A Change In Oneself
by Silent Treecko
Summary: A sequel to Chaos Begins. A girl who have to realize something still. A boy who doesn't have confidence on his skills and a mysterious person appeared. Everyone will change over time and this change will be tested.
1. A New Beginning

**Me: Hello everyone!**

**Eli: New story, new events!**

**Me: And let us celebrate New Year with a new story!**

**Eli: Guess we should start, author.**

**Me: Start the disclaimer, Eli!**

**Eli: Silent Treecko does not own GC nor its official characters. He only owns his OCs and the others belong to their respective authors.**

"**Prince": He he he… looks like someone is excited.**

**Me: Anyway, start!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 1: A New Beginning<p>

_Three Years Later_

_Sieghart's POV_

It has been quite peaceful for a while. We are getting light missions and such light errands lately and with the upcoming festival in Serdin will sure make people busy, but not us. We are actually doing the opposite. We are just relaxing here in our good old mansion. Even I found it peaceful. Some of the girls we are talking about the festival, the Harvest Festival if I can recall it right, next week. I guess I could eat many delicacies on the festival.

* * *

><p><em>Lire's POV<em>

It is spring again and many plants are already growing again. I am glad that winter is over and the upcoming festival was just making it better. I can see that Ryan was happily watering the plants. I wish that this time of the year would last longer.

* * *

><p><em>Aira's POV<em>

I was happily helping Ryan water his plants. Ryan did have many plants, especially this time of the year.

"Hey Aira, can you water these flowers for me?" Ryan said.

I replied with a positive answer and watered the plants using my own skills. The fragrant flowers were contributing to my happy mood.

"It was fun helping someone," I said to myself.

* * *

><p><em>Elyce's POV<em>

I yawned and stretched myself. It was nice to have some rest at quite a peaceful morning. Just then, Sieghart came and he gave me a glare. I glared back at him and after a while, he left. I sighed and smiled at myself.

'It's nice to be alone once in a while,' I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Dio's POV<em>

"Come on! Dio! Let's go to the shopping district!" Ley said with puppy dog eyes while she clung into my arm.

"For the last time… No!" I said.

"Please…" Ley said

"NO!" I shouted.

Then, I saw Blade who passed by and she giggled before she left. I really hate this.

"Why don't you just ask your butler?" I said.

"NO! I want YOU to be with me," Ley said.

I sighed, not happy at the situation at hand.

* * *

><p><em>Brendan's POV<em>

I was humming a tune as I was walking when I saw Aura who was walking down the stairs. Then, I noticed that one of the steps are wet and at the same time Aura was about to step on it. I rushed upstairs and stopped Aura. Aura did notice the wet spot and sighed.

"Thanks, Brendan," Aura said.

"You're welcome," I said.

Just then, a plate flied towards Aura and hit Aura at the head. Then, Aura fainted and I caught her. There, I noticed that Aura is a she.

"ELESIS!" I heard Arme shouted.

"Can't hit me, shortcake," Elesis said.

"NEVER call me THAT!" Arme shouted.

Just then, a lot of kitchenware flew in the air and one thing is… they flew towards us. I used Aura as a shield to block from the flying kitchenware.

"Arme! Stop it!" I shouted.

Just then, the army of kitchenware stopped from appearing and I sighed. Just then, I realized my mistake. I sighed and I brought Aura to the nearby couch.

"Sorry, Aura," I said to the unconscious Aura. "I should get Arme…"

Then, I went to the kitchen to face the two.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

'Ready… Fire!' I thought.

I stepped on a pad and I started firing the twenty tin cans placed five meters away from me. When all of the cans were down, I placed my pistols at my side and checked the nearby stop clock, which was Mari's invention. It read 9.35 seconds.

'Tch… not enough…' I thought.

I pressed a special button and twenty tin cans appeared at where the previous tin cans where. I replaced the magazine in my pistols and I took a deep breath before repeating the same process. This time, the clock read 9.30 seconds. I cursed myself and repeated the process repeatedly.

I drained the contents of the water bottle when I looked at the stop clock, which read 9.01 seconds. I went back to my position and repeated the process again. When I finished it, I checked the clock and it read 9.05 seconds.

"What?" I said, angry at the result.

I gripped the handle of my pistols as hard as possible. I was about to start again.

"Hey, take a break," someone said.

I turned around and saw Luxus.

"Get out! I won't take a break!" I shouted.

"Can you let me try it, at least?" Luxus asked.

I sighed and moved away from the platform where I stood.

"Suit yourself," I said.

Luxus stepped on the platform and stepped on the pad. He pulled out his guns and started firing at different directions. Then, all of the tin cans were down and my jaw dropped when I looked at the time it took him to do that. It was 6.85 seconds.

"But how…" I said.

"Eli, use this…" Luxus said while pointing to his head.

"Maybe I'll use THESE to hit THAT," I said while I mentioned my pistols first then I mentioned his head next.

"Anyway, Eli, come with me if you want to become better," Luxus said and went outside.

I decided to follow him while he led the way. We went around the mansion and used the underground stairs, which I know that will lead to the newly installed training room, training room 9. Luxus turned the lights on and the lights lit the room. The large room, filled with obstacles and other things, ensures a strategic battle with each other. The room will deem useful for someone who has good thinking skills.

"How about a challenge? Me against you," Luxus said.

"Sure! I've never backed down on a challenge," I said.

"Okay. I have to randomize the obstacles and things," Luxus said.

He placed some commands on the nearby computer and after a while, a voice said that we should stand on the pads. I stood on the blue one and Luxus stood on the red one. Then, the computer asked if we were ready. Both of us replied "Ready!" before we were teleported to different spots in the room.

"Simulation start!" a voice echoed throughout the room.

I noticed a nearby door and opened it. The door that I opened was actually a closet's door and I saw one useful item, a flash bang.

'Lucky day…' I thought.

I grabbed it and traversed my way through the room. Boxes of all sorts were all around me while I walked with caution. Just then, the stacks of boxes started falling around me and I jumped.

Big mistake.

A rope caught me and pulled me to who-knows-where. I saw that Luxus was pulling me while I am in midair. When I was close, I grabbed the flash bang and threw it at him. I closed my eyes and counted three seconds before I opened my eyes again and freed myself from the rope. Then, I jumped to a place I am not familiar. There, I found some stones.

'What should I do with these?' I thought.

Then, an idea came to my mind. I threw the stones in midair, not caring where they will land. Just then, I heard an explosion.

"I hope Luxus was hit by that explosion," I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Luxus' POV<em>

'Damn that stone!' I thought.

The stone hit the button of a time bomb, which makes it detonate itself. It is a good thing there is a three-second delay before it will explode or else this simulation was over. I walked around with caution and I saw Eli through the glass window. I fired a shot but I realized that the shot did not even pass through the glass.

'Bulletproof,' I thought.

I walked around and found two things, a water gallon and oil can. I threw the gallon towards the air and punched some holes through it using my bullets to let water flow out of it.

'I hope it'll be useful later,' I thought.

I decided to keep the oilcan for later and walked around cautiously. Then, I noticed that there was a shadow below me and it was growing bigger. Then, I looked up and saw a big boulder. Quickly, I jumped out of harm's way.

'That was close…' I thought.

Then, I saw a warp pad and used it. I found myself in a room where I found a shoe. I just left it behind and opened a door, finding myself on scaffolding with walls and glass windows.

'So, I'm at a higher level now,' I thought.

I walked around trying to spot Eli or a useful item. There, I found one grenade-shaped object and when I looked at it closely, it was a smoke grenade. I took it and walked around, still keeping my guard up.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

I walked around when I found a ladder leading to the upper level. I took it and climbed it while I kept watch of my back. There, I found some handcuffs and kept it. I walked around for a while and then I saw Luxus. He also saw me and I fired for cover while I retreat. Then, I saw a light switch and turned it off, making everything around me so dark. I placed the night-vision goggles I found back then and I saw Luxus. I was about to fire at his leg when smoke came out of nowhere. I hissed and the smoke went near me. I coughed, trying to get it out of my lungs. Just then, the smoke was gone and everything went too bright suddenly. I removed the night-vision goggles and I felt a gun was pointing at me.

I took his hand and swiftly placed the handcuff on it. I tried to place it on his other hand but he placed his other hand on his back and he kept facing me. He fired at me while I tried to get the other handcuff on him. Then, I jumped above him and swiftly placed the other handcuff and I succeeded. Then, I noticed that the chain connecting the two handcuffs was broken. Then, Luxus pointed his gun at me. I tried to get away but I slipped, noticing that there was oil under me. I cursed myself.

"It's over," Luxus said.

* * *

><p><em>Luxus' POV<em>

"It's over," I said.

Just then, I saw that Eli smiled and it gave me a suspicion. Just then, I heard something beeped and looked below, where I found a time bomb. I quickly jumped away to avoid being caught in the explosion. Smoke emerged from where the bomb exploded and after a while, it disappeared, revealing a hole on the floor, which led to the lower level. I looked at the hole and saw some footprints made of oil and I decided to go down as well.

"I'll hunt you down, Eli," I said. "I'll hunt you down."

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

I walked around to what seemed to be a maze to me. Not a single thing that is useful or any ideas went into my mind. As I continued my walk, I found a puddle of water with an empty container nearby.

'I could use this to clean the oil off me,' I thought.

After I was finished, I heard light steps, which suggested someone is coming. Then, I kicked the empty container towards the source, which hit Luxus at his chest. I fired some from my pistols but he counterattacked by firing his own, the bullets colliding in midair. This continued while he threw the container in midair, stood up, and kicked the container back at me. I kicked it back at him while I continued to counter his bullets. Again, he kicked the container back in a different manner and I kicked it upwards using a summersault while I was still firing bullets. I made a quick reload in midair as I knocked the container down and landed on one foot. There, I fired many bullets. Even though he was preoccupied, he kicked back the container by doing a roundhouse kick but he was still able to keep firing.

This time, I dodged the incoming object by bending while I continued firing at him. Then, my pistols clicked, signaling that I ran out of bullets. I spun, made quick reload by dropping the empty magazines, throwing the new ones in the air and placing them in the pistol in a quick fashion while spinning. When I finished reloading, I noticed that Luxus was preparing something big and I had decided one thing to do…

Jump.

"Bullet Time!" he said.

He spun at a quick rate while firing his bullets. I dodged or countered some of the bullets before I found a cover behind a metal box. When I heard him stop, I brought out my rifle and fired overhead. When it ran out of bullets, I reloaded it with a new mag. Just then, I noticed that there was a trapdoor nearby and I took the secret pathway. It was dark but thanks to my night-vision goggles, it is not a problem at all. I found a small table where two of the rare objects in this training area are. These two are the spike grenade and the bind bomb. The spike grenade will scatter spikes on the ground, which is a real pain to the foot and slows you down. The bind bomb can bind anyone within range except for its user.

"I should be careful in using these…" I said. "These can end the game if used properly."

I explored around in this "underground room" to find an exit different from where I entered.

* * *

><p><em>Luxus' POV<em>

I checked behind the metal box where Eli hid herself but found no one.

'Where did she go?' I thought.

I walked around for a while before I decided one thing…

I will go for broke.

I jumped on to the center of the room, where a tall platform stood. I stood on the said platform and brought out my mini gun.

"Come out wherever you are, Eli," I shouted.

I kept check of things around me and after a while; I noticed something moving at my left and quickly pulverized that spot with my mini gun. Then, Eli came out of her hiding place and she ran all over the place. I tried to hit her with my mini gun while she fired back with her rifle. She kept running around while I kept firing at her. Then, the time came where my mini gun ran out of bullets and I would have to reload it. After I attached a new set of bullets, I looked around for Eli and I found her holding a sniper gun. She fires first before I fired. Then, she hid into the shadows.

"What was that shot for?" I said aloud.

Just then, I heard something making a "snapping" sound. I looked above me and the chandelier started falling towards me. I jumped out of the way and landed on a space where the space is very wide. Just then, Eli rushed towards me while she fired at me, I countered back. I noticed that she tried to close the gap between us and this made me feel that she is up to something.

I tried to keep her away but she kept pressing herself forward. She is even fast at countering my attacks. Then, I noticed that he was running in circles around me. 'Something is up,' I thought. With that, I brought out my shotgun and fired at every direction. Just then, I noticed she threw a metallic object towards me and when it landed, spikes were scattered everywhere.

'I've got to stay still,' I thought.

Then, she approached me and attacked by placing her foot in front of her. I grabbed her foot and prepared my other hand for the pistol.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

I used my other foot to kick his pistol away. It went to my left, where spikes guarded the weapon.

'One down, one more to go,' I thought.

I tried to kick him in the gut but he disappeared. I landed quickly and I readied my next surprise.

'I know this trick all too well,' I thought.

I dropped the bind bomb and I heard "Too sl…" before the bomb exploded. There, Luxus was rendered immobilized by some kind of binding magic and I grabbed his other pistol. Then, I pointed my pistol and said, "I win." He smiled and said "Okay. I give up."

"Simulation ended," the computer said. "Returning in five… four… three… two… one…"

Then, we found ourselves back to the entrance. I gave Luxus the pistol I grabbed from him and he picked the other one, which was just nearby.

"Great job, Eli," Luxus said.

"Thanks," I replied.

"Now go and resume that training of yours. You'll be able to accomplish your goal of five seconds with enough practice," Luxus said and left the room.

I walked back to the training room 3 and resumed my training. I would have to keep in mind to be open in any ideas that come to mind since it will help you to accomplish a goal. That is what Luxus was trying to get into me during the challenge. I stepped on the pad and tried a different technique in shooting down the cans and when I am finished, the clock read 7.96 seconds.

"Okay, keep that up, Eli," I talked to myself.

* * *

><p><em>Arme's POV<em>

Amy, Lire, Scarlet and I talked to each other about the upcoming festival. Just then, Amy tackled an interesting info.

"I've heard that in the upcoming festival, a faraway merchant will sell a rare fruit!" Amy said.

"What kind of rare fruit?" Lire, who was clearly curious about the fruit, asked.

"They say that its color is like a beautiful rainbow and just seeing it gives a comforting aura," Amy said. "And what's interesting is that it can heal any sickness in everyone if eaten."

"Wow! That's interesting!" Scarlet said.

"I'd have to agree," I said. "Maybe Mari can do an experiment on it so she can produce potions out of it."

"That would be sweet!" Amy said.

"Yeah. I can't wait for the upcoming festival!" Lire said.

"The festival will be a blast, I'll say," I said, excited about it.

* * *

><p><em>Zeta's POV<em>

"So, what do you think about the festival, Razer?" I asked.

'Meh, I don't care about it,' he replied. 'But you seem to be excited somehow.'

"I'm not!" I said.

"Zeta!" Selena shouted.

Selena ran towards me in a hurry.

"Zeta! I want you to see something!" she said. "Let's go!"

Then, she started dragging me to who-knows-where.

"Slow down a bit!" I shouted.

* * *

><p><em>Nate's POV<em>

I was walking around the mansion when Blade stopped near me.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Just taking a run around Serdin," Blade said. "It seems that lots of people where entering the kingdom."

"I think it's because of the festival," I said.

"I think so," Blade said. "I've got to go for another run. Bye!"

Then, she quickly disappeared. A quick breeze hit me, signifying that she just left, and I proceeded to walk around the mansion.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

I walked inside the kingdom of Serdin. Their security was tight and I am glad that I have sneaked through it by hiding below a big cart. I gazed at my surroundings as I tried to find a place for me to stay for a week.

'I hope this time I will find what I am looking for,' I thought.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter.<strong>

**Eli: 6.70 seconds! *grin***

**Me: You are quite near to your goal.**

**Eli: *smiles***

"**Prince": And I hate to burst your bubble but you are still 1.7 seconds away from your goal.**

**Eli: It will be a piece of cake.**

**Me: Speaking of cake, give me some of that!**

**I quickly took a slice out of the cake on the table.**

"**Prince": Me too…**

**Eli: Me three!**

**Me: Anyway, Happy New Year everyone! REVIEW!**

**Notes (A guideline for further understanding and for future chapters):**

**1. This happened three years after Chaos Begins.**

**2. There is an upcoming festival named the Harvest Festival.**

**3. The season is spring.**

**4. Poor Aura.**

**5. A continuation on Eli versus Luxus. Hope you like it!**

**6. Amy mentioned of a mysterious fruit.**

**7. Someone went through the Serdin's security for some unknown reason.**

**8. That someone was also looking for something.**


	2. Eli

**Me: Ugh… My arm hurts.**

**Eli: Type the chapter already!**

**Me: O.o**

"**Prince": Heh heh heh heh… Good luck, author,**

**Me: I just typed the one-shot and I want some rest…**

"**Prince": You mean…**

**Me: Yes… The one where Eli cried… Admit it, Eli.**

**Eli: Type it already!**

**Me: *sighs* I'm out.**

**I have fallen asleep like a light.**

**Eli: Hey!**

"**Prince": Leave him be, Eli. You can't expect him to type a good story if he's mind and body are too tired.**

**Eli: He'll be sorry when he wakes up.**

**The next day…**

**Me: GOOD MORNING EVERYONE!**

**Eli: *cracks her knuckles***

**Me: Uhm… "Prince", door or window?**

"**Prince": Window is the best choice.**

**Me: Run! *jumps off the window***

**Eli: Hey! Come back!**

"**Prince": Heh heh heh… This should be fun…**

**After a while… Eli and I came back and we're all wet.**

"**Prince": What happened? *takes a sip on tea cup***

**Me: Eli fell into a river and sadly, a waterfall was nearby. Did I mention that Eli did not know how to swim?**

**Eli: S…Shut up! *sneezes***

"**Prince": I didn't know Eli can't swim… You want me to teach you?**

**Eli: SHUT UP! *sneezes***

"**Prince": I have some tea here if you want.**

**Eli: Thanks… *pours some tea on a tea cup***

**Me: I want some too…**

**Eli: You can't have some until you finish the chapter. *takes a sip out of the tea cup***

**Me: Okay… Do the disclaimer while I get a towel and some dry clothes.**

"**Prince": Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase and its official characters and he only owns his OCs. The others have their corresponding author.**

**Me: I'll start then…**

* * *

><p>Ch. 2: Eli<p>

_Ace's POV_

I walked along the corridors and I passed the lab with a big sign saying 'DO NOT DISTURB' in red ink. I sighed when I saw that.

"Is Mari still working on the blueprint that Eli had received three years ago?" I said to myself.

I continued walking when I saw Torn and said hi and his reply was a mean look before he passed by. I just ignored him and continued walking along the corridors.

* * *

><p><em>Blade's POV<em>

I watched Eli training. Yesterday, she was doing a speed firing test and today, it seems that she's trying to improve her close combat skills. I got bored and I stood up.

"I'm afraid that fighting an inanimate object gives you a little experience," I said.

"So, you're suggesting something?" Eli said.

"Why don't you try me as your sparring partner?" I suggested. "No weapons, no tricks. Just bare hands and skills in close combat fighting."

"Challenge accepted," Eli said.

She formed a stance while I prepared myself for the fight. I attacked first by trying to hit her head first. She saw my attack and blocked it. At the same time, she grabbed me and threw me overhead. I landed on the ground face first.

"Come on. Get up," Eli said.

I did what she said and took my stance. I tried to confuse her by running around her as fast as possible. I was watching her every movements and I saw that she isn't moving an inch. When I was behind her, I stopped and attacked her. My fist collided with her back but she didn't flinch. Instead, she grabbed my arm, kicked me in the gut and threw me overhead and I landed with my back first.

"Just tell me if you had enough," Eli said, somehow taunting me.

"Oh yeah? I'm just getting warmed up," I said while I stood up.

I dashed towards her and delivered a series of punches and kicks. She either dodged or blocked it while she tried for a counterattack. I, of course, dodged it and countered. This lasted for a while until I stepped back and thought of a new strategy. I dashed before I did an axe kick on her. She blocked it with two hands and I used those hands to jump above her. When I was in the apex of my jump, I forced myself to go down while aiming my foot at her. She rolled to the side and dodged my attack, which formed a cloud of dust. By the time it disappeared, it was her turn to deliver attacks. I dodged or blocked the incoming attacks while I slowly move backward. The Pistol Slayer also moved forward while she delivered blows. Then, I bumped into something hard and I realized that I was cornered into a wall. I can see a smile on her face as she delivered more blows. I was distracted by the wall and some attacks collided with me. Then, I saw an incoming punch, whose target is my head and my reaction was to duck, the punch collided with the wall.

"Ouch!" the cerulean-haired girl held his sore hand and blew it.

'This is my chance,' I thought.

I punched her in the gut and followed it up with an uppercut, both of them landed on her body. Then, I delivered a series of punches with a mix of quick kicks, some landed a hit and the others were either blocked or dodged by her. Then, I delivered a roundhouse kick, which she blocked. Then, she grabbed my leg which I used for the roundhouse kick. While she held my leg, I kicked her right side and she grabbed my leg. Then, realization hit me when gravity started to pull on me after Eli raised both of her hands and I was hanged in midair. I flailed helplessly as I beg for her to put me back to the ground.

"Let me go!" I pleaded.

"Say pretty please first~," Eli said.

I hesitated and tried to calm myself down, which I succeeded at doing so. Then, I grabbed her legs and pulled them and she went off balance. She landed on the ground and I had a rather soft landing since I landed on her. I stood up and tried to get away but she grabbed one of my feet and I landed face first. Just then, I can feel a foot on my back.

"Give up?" Eli said.

Just then, Amy's voice echoed through the air and said "its breakfast time, everyone!"

The Pistol Slayer removed her foot and she offered her hand to help. I grabbed hold of it and I stood up with the help of Eli.

"You're not bad," Eli commented.

"You're good at it," I said.

"Let's go and eat breakfast, shall we?" she asked.

"Of course," I said.

Both of us went inside the mansion and headed for the kitchen.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

As soon as everyone gathered, breakfast has started. Everyone ate in a calm manner with an exception for Elesis, who ate in a quick pace.

"You must've a high metabolism, Elesis," Eli commented, which earned a glare from the red knight.

Eli just continued eating after that. Then, Eli filled her glass with water and drank from it. After she finished, she went back to eat again but she noticed that her food was missing. She looked around and she spotted Elesis eating it.

"Hey! That's mine!" Eli shouted.

"Elesis! Give it back!" Ronan demanded.

Just then, Eli brought out her rifle and fired at Elesis. Some ran away from the table, some hid in safe places and the others just didn't care what's going on. Elesis ran around and she was followed by the Rifle Assassin's bullets.

"Whoa! Stop it!" Sieghart shouted.

"Eli!" Kaistern said.

"Ceasefire! CEASEFIRE!" Ace shouted from below the table.

"Transato!" Brendan said and the firing stopped.

The ones who were hiding went out of their hiding place.

"Where's Eli?" Aira asked.

"I just teleported her to the nearby lake," Brendan said.

"Oh…" Sapphire said.

All of them, except the ones who didn't mind the situation, sat down on their respective seat and ate. Only after a while of silence did they realize something.

"You fool! Eli can't swim!" Scarlet shouted.

"Uh oh…" Brendan said.

"Let's go! Double time!" Lire said.

Some of them stood up and went out through the windows. The ones who have stood up sprinted towards the nearby lake.

"They could've just used Brendan's Transato…" Dio commented while the others are gone.

"I'm afraid we can't tell them now. And Brendan's with them," Ley said.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

"Gotcha!" I said.

I grabbed hold of a fish I just caught in this small lake. I was glad that I finally caught one. Just then, I heard a scream before I heard a loud splash. Then, I heard shouts of help, although it was unclear. I panicked and looked around and saw someone who was drowning.

"I'm coming!"I shouted.

I swam towards the point where someone was drowning. Then, the poor one started to sink and I dove after the person. I didn't mind who the person was and tried to save that person. I grabbed the drowning person and swam towards the surface. When both of us surfaced, I swam towards the shore and placed the person on the ground.

"Man you're heavy!" I said before I gazed into the person I just saved.

"E…Eli?" I said in disbelief.

Just then, I remembered that she can't swim and I had to do something.

'Should I do the CPR?' I thought.

Just then, Eli coughed.

'Glad that she's okay,' I thought and sighed.

"Eli! Where are you?!" someone shouted.

"She can't hear you if she's underwater!" someone argued with the first one.

I saw that Eli slowly opened her eyes and before she completely opened it, I hid on the nearby bush. Just then, I realized that my fish is gone.

'Guess I'll have to catch a new one,' I said and sighed.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

'Did I saw someone… familiar?' I thought.

I stood up and looked around. Just then, some of the Chase came and approached me.

"Eli, are you alright?" Arme asked.

"Yes," I said.

"Wait. How did you…" Brendan said and I cut him off.

"I think someone helped me," I said.

"So, do you know who's he?" Sieghart asked.

"I caught a glimpse of the person but I don't know the guy," I said.

"Okay," Sieghart said.

"So… shall we go back?" Elesis said.

"Sure… But first…" I said.

I pointed my pistols at the Omni Switcher.

"Spell Break!" I shouted.

I fired a bullet and after that, I dashed towards Brendan and grabbed him by the arm. Then, I threw him into the lake. When he surfaced, I threw Elesis at him.

"Take a swim, you two," I said while I placed my pistols back to where I place them.

"Wow, Eli…" Arme said.

"Let's go," I said "Unless if you want to join them."

The others shook their head as a no and I left.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter! Now, give me some of that tea.<strong>

**I grabbed a tea cup and poured some tea in it.**

"**Prince": New information revealed: Eli can't swim!**

**Eli: SHUT UP!**

"**Prince": I told you that I can teach you how to swim.**

**Eli: To hell with that!**

**Me: Anyway, I think I'm going to make a standard from now on. The standard is that I will only update if the latest chapter HAS AT LEAST THREE REVIEWS.**

**Eli: O.o**

**Me: I'm just going to do so since I want some comments on every chapter that I worked hard on. I really want to know what you think so that I can improve the story. So guys, please understand me and review.**

**Eli: You heard the author, R-E-V-I-E-W!**

**Notes:**

**1. Mari's still working on the blueprints Eli got three years ago.**

**2. Yes… Eli can't swim.**

**3. Who's this person, who seems to know Eli? Find out later in the story. ^^**


	3. Eli's Regret

**Me: So many requirements…**

**Eli: At least you found the time to type this story.**

'**Prince': Yeah… Eli is right, dude.**

**Me: After this, I'd have to continue doing my requirements, okay?**

**Eli: Got it! 'Prince', do the disclaimer!**

'**Prince': Can't you do it yourself, Eli?**

**Eli: Why you…**

**Me: Hey, hey! Stop it. I'll ask someone else if both of you doesn't want to.**

'**Prince': Fine with me! I'm just saying that Eli can't…**

**Then, gunfire can be heard.**

**Eli: WATCH IT!**

**?: Silent Treecko does not own Grand Chase and the official characters. He only owns his OCs.**

**Me: O.o Who said that? Anyway, here it is!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 3: Eli's Regret<p>

_? POV_

I swung from a tree branch to another while picking an apple along the way. Then, I stopped and took a bite on the apple. As I did so, I gazed at the mansion in front of me. According to the Intel that I acquired, it's the Grand Chase mansion where the Chasers lived. Then, I can see a certain cerulean-haired girl through a window.

"Long time, no see, Eli," I said to myself as I juggled the apple in one hand.

I took another huge bite out of the apple while I placed my hand behind my brown hair. Then, I saw a yellow haired girl coming out of the mansion. Fearing that my presence will be detected, I ran deep into the forest.

* * *

><p><em>Lire's POV<em>

I heard some rustle on the nearby forest and I brought out my bow and prepared an arrow. I aimed and shot the arrow quickly. After that, I ran towards the area where I shot my arrow and I found my arrow, which hit a tree trunk.

'Just my imagination, I guess…' I thought.

I went back to the mansion, only to have found out that Aura was electrocuted by Eli.

'Oh no…' I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Aura's POV<em>

"Stop those electro-bullets, Eli!" I shouted.

"You are SO SORRY for saying that!" Eli shouted.

"I'm sorry!" I shouted while running for my life. "I didn't mean to ask your cup…"

"AURA!" Eli shouted and hastened her attacks.

"Eek!" I continued to run for my life.

Just then, a shot hit me, which froze me to the bone.

"It's… c… c…cold!" I said.

Then, Eli broke the ice and tackled me to the ground. I asked for her mercy but her eyes told that I'll be in for a lot of trouble, which I already had run into. I gulped as she pointed her pistol at my head.

"Aura…" she said with anger obviously on her voice.

"Have mercy…" I pleaded to her.

Just then, something whined and caught both of our attention. I looked at my right and saw Maggie with a sad look on her face. With a sigh, Eli placed her pistols back at her pistol holders and got off of me. Then, she left. I sighed at how things happened. Just then, a sound of metal made me look at my right and I saw Eli with a chain. I got freaked out and I tried to run away but I tripped. Then, Eli tied the chain around my neck and she forcefully took me outside like a dog.

I pleaded for my freedom but it was for no avail, seeing that Eli didn't care at all. I can see that her mood… changed somehow. From the very hyper one, to the sad-looking one which makes me think that something was on her mind. Just then, I realized that the other end of the chain which Eli held was tied to the nearby apple tree, which was near the dining room. I realized that I was like a leashed dog.

"Eli, please!" I pleaded but it seems that she didn't hear it. Her face… it seems that something was on her mind.

"Don't even try to escape there…" she said softly before she left.

'Something was wrong with her…' I thought.

Then, I noticed that Elesis was watching at me intently from the window at the dining room.

* * *

><p><em>Brendan's POV<em>

I was reading on a newspaper when I saw Eli came by.

"Good morning, Eli!" I shouted.

She just walked towards the stairs while staring at the floor.

'What's wrong with her?' I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Dante's POV<em>

As I walked into the kitchen with Arme and my sister, I noticed that the red knight was staring at the window. I looked closely and I saw that she was watching Aura, who was tied into the apple tree, outside.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Nothing…" Elesis replied.

"I think she remembered the time where she was hanged at the tree by Lass and she stayed there for the whole day," Arme said.

"Really? That happened before?" I asked.

"Yes!" my sister said.

"I'm going…" Elesis said before she left.

"Is it just me or Elesis didn't take any food and chew it down?" I asked.

"I think we should check the fridge," Arme said.

"No need…" I said. "We should just concentrate on the food."

"Right~" Amy said.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

I locked the door and sat on my bed, holding a pillow near me. I hugged the pillow while I recollected my thoughts.

'Cross…' I thought.

I planted my face into the pillow and I sighed. I can feel someone poking at me and I knew it was Maggie, since she's the only one I let inside this room. I pat her head and sighed. I regret that I didn't know him better. I regret that I was just playing around him. I regret that I didn't tell him. I regret everything.

"Eli…" I heard.

I jolted out of my trance and I looked around but saw no one around except Eli.

'Must've been my imagination,' I thought. 'But still…'

I got frustrated and I lied down on my bed. I was angry at myself. Just then, someone knocked on the door.

"Eli! Breakfast's ready!" it was Kaistern who shouted.

"Not hungry…" I said softly.

"Do you want me to bring your breakfast in your room?" he asked.

"No…" I said.

I heard footsteps getting away from my room. I thought that why didn't I heard him coming but the I thought that I might've been to occupied. Still, I was pretty frustrated at myself that I stood out of my bed, grabbed my rifle, opened the window and aimed at a tree.

"Bullet Shower!" I shouted.

I shot the tree at its base and a magic circle appeared above it. Then, it rained bullets above the tree, which made its base weak enough to fall by itself because of its weight. I placed my rifle at the nearby chair and I sighed to myself.

"OH NO! MY TREE!" someone shouted.

I plopped down into my bed and I hugged my pillow. I was muttering at myself with random words that came to mind. Maggie was trying to cheer me up by licking my face but I simply ignored the anteater.

'I hate myself,' was the last thing I thought before I fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter. I am busy, really.<strong>

**Eli: Geez… Type the next chapter okay.**

"**Prince": And put some action on it before Eli will shoot you in the head.**

**Me: I don't know but what I'm sure of is that the story will get more exciting news. These chapters are just here to jumpstart the story and give some clues to these awesome readers.**

**Eli: You don't have to give flowery words, do you?**

"**Prince": Whatever.**

**Me: Okay… Anyway, remember to REVIEW!**

**Notes:**

**1. I hope this'll give more information on the unknown guy. Feel free to guess.**

**2. Eli can give her bullets some special properties and these are electro-bullets, fire bullets, ice bullets and etc.**

**3. Maggie is now in Eli's care and she knows Maggie very well because she gave Maggie to Cross in the first place, and with one look at the pet reminds her of Cross. Did I mention in Chaos Begins before that Cross received Maggie from Eli?**

**4. Elesis watched through the whole Aura-is-being-punished scene. She was reminded of the past. ^^**

**5. You know who shouted this line, right? The one with "OH NO! MY TREE!" right?**


	4. The Upcoming Festival

**Eli: Why pack a lot?! Are you sure about this?**

**Me: Eli, don't argue! It'll be a one week trip and it will be fun, I guess.**

'**Prince': Meh… And you'll just leave us here…**

**Eli: Maybe you're going to meet Cross! *lightens up and eyes sparkle***

**Me: Maybe… Maybe not…**

**Eli: I still wonder where Cross is!**

**Me: *smiles***

'**Prince': You really care for him, eh c…**

**Eli: Hush!**

**Me: Let's just start. Disclaimer? Either one of you please?**

**Eli and 'Prince': Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase and the characters which were played. He only owns his you-know-who OCs and the others belong to their respective owners.**

'**Prince': And he better improve this story…**

**Me: Will do. Anyway, you two are really something. As expected from being r…**

**Eli: *fires a shot from her pistol***

**Me: Okay! Start!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 4: The Upcoming Festival<p>

_Third Person View_

It's another day for the Chase but this day was not just an ordinary one. It's the day before the Harvest Festival begins. Some of them woke up early and they are going to prepare for their morning. Ryan did an early visit in his flower beds, Mari went to her lab for something, Zeta and Selena chatted with each other, the twins had an early argument with each other, Blade did her morning runs, and Eli did her training routine. This time, Eli practiced carrying heavy things while maintaining agility.

Amy checked the mailbox and to her expectation there is a letter inside. She already knew what it is and she opened it while jumping in excitement. She read it and after that she went inside, spreading the news to everyone. Amy's word may have been different when she talked to the different Chasers but the Siren's words only meant one thing. The Harvest Festival, which will happen tomorrow, will be executed throughout the whole day. The Queen ordered for the Chaser's presence and they'll be choosing their own attire. Also, the Chaser's were requested to be prepared also, just in case something goes wrong.

Amy had already spread the news to everyone except for a certain girl named Eli.

Meanwhile, Eli was dodging the rubber balls headed her way while bearing the weight of two 10-kilogram weights which are attached on her hands. As she continued dodging the circular object, the floor beneath her, which is composed of several treadmills, altered directions and speed, giving her more challenge in accomplishing her task. As she jumped to dodge the rubber ball, images started to flash in her mind.

"_What you seek is a hard task,_"

Then, Eli was in a dark place.

"_Failure opts to strike again. Fear comes again,_"

Then, Eli was on the ground, staring at the dark silhouette in front of her.

"_Are you sure that you're in the right path?_" the figure asked.

The scene changed to where Eli was staring at Cross leaving the place.

"Cross!" Eli shouted.

Eli ran towards Cross but as she did so, Cross seems to go further away from her.

"Cross, come back!" Eli shouted.

Then, she tripped. She tried to reach her hand to the Protector whose image was getting smaller and smaller.

"CROSS!"

Then, something hit her head and she fell into the ground. Her back was laid on the ground and the treadmill beneath her stopped. Then, it came into her mind that she was training and probably she was hit by a rubber ball on the head. She stood up, holding her head because she felt a little dizzy. Just then, the idol dancer came with the news.

"Hey Eli!" the cheery dancer came.

"Oh… it's you, Amy," Eli said in a low tone.

"You know what? I have some GREAT news!" Amy said.

The Starlet started to give Eli the details and Eli understood all of them even though Amy talked so fast.

"So, what do you think?" Amy said.

"Well, I think the festival will be great!" Eli said with a smile on her face.

"Anyway, I'd better get going and help Arme and my brother in the kitchen~," the pink girl said and left.

Then, Eli resumed her training by stepping at the pad in the middle of the room. The treadmill slowly started as Eli prepared for another round.

* * *

><p><em>Zeta's POV<em>

"Hey, Zeta," Selena said.

"What?" I asked.

"Can you help me pick my clothes for the festival tomorrow?" she asked.

I thought about it for a while before I gave her my positive response.

"Thanks~!" the Lucifer said before standing up.

"Wait!" I grabbed her hand.

"W-why?" she asked.

"I heard that they will perform a play tomorrow. Do you want to check it out?" I asked.

"Sure!" Selena said with her warm smile.

I let go of her hand and she went away after staring at me for a second.

* * *

><p><em>Sieghart's POV<em>

I knocked at the lab's door while holding a box with one hand.

"Come in!" came the expected response.

I opened the door and closed it right after I went in. I placed the box on the counter and went near Mari.

"So, how's it going?" I asked.

"Almost finished," the Ether Tech said. "I still need three crucial parts in this."

"And what are those crucial parts?" I said while I stared at the unfinished complex object.

"Parts Enhancer, Power Core and an Energy Core," Mari said as she took some notes. "These materials are rare, though,"

"Where can we find them?" I asked.

"I'll have to do some research on that," she said while she inspected the blueprint.

"Okay. Maybe we could ask the others to find it. Everyone didn't have any missions, anyway," I said.

"I'm not in a hurry to finish this," she said. "Also, let everyone prepare for the festival."

"Alright then," I said, watching her tighten the screw at some point.

"Still, that weapon is pretty complex," I commented.

"I can tell that the blueprints where made by someone who have already mastered how to design a good weapon," Mari said. "And from the look of things, this weapon will excel greatly in combat."

"Well, I'll have to see that with my very own eyes," I said while I chuckled.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

"So, the auction will be here," I said.

I pointed at the wide garden of the castle.

"The exits are here," I said.

I pointed at the three gates around the castle.

"Where should I stay?" I asked myself.

I held my clawed gauntlet and started to think about the question I just ask.

"I should get the fruit… No matter what it takes…" I muttered.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

Breakfast started and it got finished without any trouble. Everyone was planning on what to wear on the festival day. Some of the girls are planning to buy some clothes and they're dragging some boys into it. The others cleaned their old clothes that they'll wear and they prepared it for tomorrow. Elesis sharpened her swords and Ronan questioned her.

"The Queen requested for us to be prepared," Elesis said, putting emphasis on the last word. "That's why I'm preparing."

"Oh… Okay," the Abyss Knight said. "So, have you decided what to wear for tomorrow?"

"Yes. As a matter of fact, I've already prepared it yesterday," the red Knight said.

"Good for you," Ronan said.

Just then, Brendan came while humming a tune.

"Oh, Brendan!" Ronan said.

"What?" Brendan asked.

"Are you going to the town later?" Ronan asked.

"Yes. Why?" the Omni Switcher said.

"Great timing! Can you drop by at the post office and hand them this letter?" Ronan said while he gave a small letter.

"Sure! Why not?" Brendan said.

"Oh, and no silly pranks, okay?" Ronan said.

"You can count me on that. Transato!" Brendan said before he disappeared in a blink of an eye.

"I hope so… That letter was for the queen of Kanavan…" Ronan said.

Meanwhile, Elyce sighed when she saw Aura, who just slammed the door and it hit his hand.

"So, Aura, you'll wear a dress tomorrow, right?" Elyce asked.

"Yes…" he said.

"So, have you picked out your dress yet?" she asked.

"No…" the aura user said while he sighed.

"I can help you out if you want," Elyce said.

"T…t…thanks," Aura said.

Jin was about to get dragged by Amy when Eli distracted her and she gave Jin the signal to scoot away if he wants to. He walked away as Eli talked to Amy.

"So, how about we should go together?" Eli suggested.

"Sounds fun~!" Amy said. "We'll have to go with the others."

"While we wait for them, can I ask something?" Eli said.

"Go ahead!" Amy said.

"What do you do when you're not in the mood to do anything?" Eli asked.

"What do you mean?" the Sistina asked.

"I mean what do you do when you don't feel right about yourself?" the Rifle Assassin asked.

"Well, I'll find what's bothering me first then I'll let all my emotions out of it so that I won't feel bad about myself," Amy said. "Wait… Is there something bothering you, sister?"

"No…" Eli said. "Oh, here are the others."

"Then, let's go~!" Amy shouted.

Just then, Lass whispered something into Arme before he left. Luxus, on the other hand, went outside the mansion and gazed at the sky.

"Why do I feel that something bad is going to happen?" Luxus asked himself.

Meanwhile, at the castle of Kanavan, a girl in her twenties spoke with the queen.

"I understand. So, you will continue your journey, right?" the queen of Kanavan said.

"Of course, your majesty," she said.

"Then, good luck on your journey," the queen said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter! I'll make the next chapter soon.<strong>

**Eli: You might've forgotten something author. Please double check your things.**

**Me: I already checked it four times. Nothing is missing in my backpack, I guess.**

"**Prince": Then, we'll wish you a safe journey.**

**Me: Heh heh… Thanks!**

**Eli: Notes first before you go!**

**Me: Here!**

**Notes:**

**1. I have adopted Eli's training from one of the episodes in pokémon.**

**2. What Mari's doing still needed some parts to finish.**

**3. Someone was planning about something…**

**4. HINT: Some of the characters gave some hints on what will happen on the next chapter. Try looking for the literary device there ^^.**

**5. *sings* Who's that girl? *pun intended* *stops* More information about her in the future chapters. (Forgot the complete lyrics of the song ~.~ Feel free to continue if you get my point here)**


	5. Everyone in Action

**Me: I'm back.**

**Eli: *puts out her pistols* And the party will start!**

"**Prince": I can feel that this chapter will be great!**

**Me: Oh, it is! For you and for everyone!**

**Eli: Let's get this party started.**

"**Prince": Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase and the playable characters. He doesn't own other OCs except for me, Eli, Maggie and the rest.**

**Eli: *fires a bullet out of her pistol***

* * *

><p>Ch. 5: Everyone in Action<p>

_Third Person View_

The day that everyone have been looking for have arrived. The Harvest Festival came in quickly and almost everyone was excited. Everyone wore their clothes that they have been planning to wear yesterday and everyone went out of the mansion, where they're greeted by some fireworks that signals the start of the festival.

"Let's go guys!" Amy shouted.

Amy went ahead while everyone followed slowly. As everyone got near the castle, there was already a crowd gathering near the castle. Merchants sold their fine harvests to people with the price a little higher than the market price. Some carnival games were also around, which made Aira want to try one.

"Are you sure?" Zero asked.

"Yes!" Aira said. "I want the prize!"

"Okay then…" the Wanderer said.

Both of them left the group while the others walked towards the castle. The crowd noticed the group's presence and they gave way to them as a sign of respect.

"Look mom! It's the Grand Chase!" one of the kids shouted.

"Kids these days…" Eli muttered.

"Wow! They look gorgeous!" someone said.

"I'm not even confident about the dress that I wear," Aura said softly so that the group will only hear her.

"Aura, you look great in that dress," Dante said to her.

"Thanks…" Aura said.

Then, she tripped when she stepped on her dress. It's a good thing that Jin is in front of her and caught her using his back. Jin felt Aura's chest on her back and he cleared his throat.

"Aura, can you…" Jin said.

"I'm sorry!" Aura sighed and helped herself to get up.

The group then proceeded towards the castle, where they separated their ways. Elesis, Ronan, Brendan, Jin and Amy went into the foods stations and Ryan and Lire came too so that they'll keep a watch on Elesis. Lass, Arme, Blade, Nate, Elyce, Dio and Ley went into the games stations where they met Aira and Zero. Dante, Aura, Zeta, Selena, Kaistern and Ace visited the merchants to check on their goods and Eli, Sieghart, Zero, Mari, Sapphire, Scarlet, Luxus and Torn checked the auctions that were happening.

"Elesis!" Ronan shouted as Elesis raided the food cart selling sweet corn.

He quickly grabbed at the gluttonous red knight by the arm.

"Take it easy," Ronan advised.

"Oh sure!" Elesis said while she scooped some corn and paid the price.

Ronan just sighed and Elesis ran into the cotton candy cart.

"DANGO!" Brendan shouted as he approached a stall.

Meanwhile, Aira hit the target and received a fluffy stuff toy as a reward.

"Yay!" Aira said as she jumped with joy over her win at the game.

"You look cute!" Elyce came out of nowhere.

"Uuuuuuuu~" Aira said. "Stop it, Elyce!"

"I'll try that whack-a-mole game!" Blade said as she ran towards the game booth.

"Hey, I'll come with you!" Nate said as he ran after Blade.

"Arme, want to try the Ferris wheel?" Lass pointed at the ride which was just built some days ago.

"Sure," Arme said as both of them went into the ride.

Meanwhile, Dante checked on the fresh fruits and vegetables.

"Wow! These looks like they're just picked a while ago," Dante commented.

"They are sir," the merchant said. "They are the finest in town."

Zeta paid for some apples and gave one to Selena.

"So, what do you think about this festival?" Zeta asked.

"It's great so far!" Selena said. "How about we play some games?"

"Sounds fun," Zeta said and both of them went to the said station.

Meanwhile, a pretty good lawn mower was just sold at the auction. Eli just sighed because they could've bought a lawn mower at the same quality for a lower price somewhere else.

"When will that mystery fruit seller appear?" Eli asked to Mari.

"They say that the guy will appear soon," Sieghart said.

"Now, we will auction some good well-baked cookies that are made by the Kildan corporation," the auction manager said.

"Cookies from the Kildan corporation?" Sieghart said while shocked from what he heard.

"What about it?" Luxus asked.

"It was one of the best cookies in this world," Mari said.

"Starting bid is 1, 000," the auction manager said.

"I'll bid 50, 000," Sieghart said.

"50,000!" the auction manager said. "Any bids?"

There was silence in the air.

"I'll count to ten and if no one bid, the guy there will have it," he said through the microphone.

The counting started and when it is finished, no one bid.

"There! The guy at the back will get it," the auction manager said.

Sieghart went into the manager, paid the price and received the container containing the said cookies before he went back to the group.

"Are you crazy?" Eli sighed at the bid Sieghart just made.

"Let him be, Eli," Scarlet said.

Just then, Elesis and Ronan came. Elesis was carrying a lot of assorted food as she sat on one of the chairs near the others.

"So, what happened?" Elesis said as she took a large bite on a hamburger.

"Your ancestor just bought some cookies from Kildan corporation for 50, 000," Eli said.

"What? Really?" Elesis said. "Gramps! Give me some!"

"You've got to be kidding me," Eli said.

"Come and get it," Sieghart said.

Just then, there was a brawl between the great great great great great great great great great grandfather and the great great great great great great great great great granddaughter. Eli just sighed at the commotion.

"CALM DOWN YOU TWO!" Eli said as she pointed each of her pistols at the two.

The two did calm down with the help of the others as they let the commotion die.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

'What's with those two?' I thought as Eli and her other friends stopped her. Typically, Eli just pointed her pistols at them.

'That's what I'd expect from her,' I thought.

Then, my mind told me to get my attention back at the auction.

'That fruit should appear soon,' I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Selena's POV<em>

"Ah!" I shouted as I missed hitting the third ace in the set of cards that were pasted on the wall.

"Too bad," Zeta said. "Still, you have some price."

Selena got a rubber ball from the booth owner.

"But I want the main prize!" I shouted.

"Then, try again," Zeta said.

I tried the game again but I wasn't as lucky as I was before.

"Oops…" I said.

Zeta laughed a little and being a mischievous girl I am, I hit Zeta using the rubber ball which bounced its way back to me. I put my tongue out as a sign that I'm playing with him.

"Selena!" Zeta shouted.

"You should be a good boy or else…" I said while I turned around.

"Selena, I was just having some fun," Zeta said.

"Then take this!" I hit him again with the rubber ball.

"Hey!" Zeta threw the rubber ball back at me but I caught it. I put my tongue out again to tease him.

"Can't hit me!" I shouted.

"Maybe. But I can do this!" Zeta said as he approached me and carried me bridal style. I can feel warmth on my cheeks.

"Put me down!" I said as I hit him.

"Say pretty please first," Zeta said, obviously teasing me.

"I could've used my lances at you if we're not in a public place," I said as I glared at him.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

"And now, the next auction is some batch of fruit that are soothing to the eye and when they are eaten, they taste like heaven and these can cure any diseases!" the auction manager said.

"The fruit's up!" I said.

"This costs 100,000 each," the auction manager said. "Any bids?"

"150,000!" someone shouted and I felt that the guy's somewhat familiar as I based on the voice.

"200,000!" Mari bid since she wants to study on the fruit.

"250,000!" the same guy said which made me wonder who he was. The voice… it's pretty familiar. Where did I hear it before?

"300,000!" Mari bid again.

"500,000!" The guy bid again.

"Wow. That guy was desperate," Ronan commented.

I noticed that Luxus was looking around him and he felt uneasy.

"Is something wrong?" I asked him.

"No… nothing…" he said.

"600,000!" Mari bid again.

"700,000!" the guy bid.

"700,000!" the manager said.

"800,000!" Mari said.

"800,000!" the manager repeated.

"1 million!" the guy said.

"1 M!" the manager said.

"1.1 M!" Mari shouted.

"1.1 M! Any calls?" the manager said.

"1.5 M!" the guy said.

"1.5 M!" the manager said. "So, will you bid again, miss?"

Mari hesitated a bit.

"Don't worry, Mari," Sieghart said. "There are still some of them to be auctioned."

"By the count of ten…" the manager said.

"Ten…"

"Nine…"

"Eight…"

"Seven…"

"Six…"

"Five…"

"Four…"

"Three…"

"Two…"

"One…"

"Okay! This item will go to the guy with brown hair," the manager said.

'Brown hair?' I thought.

Just then, a figure in black cloak came into the stage and pushed the manager aside. Then, he caught the fruit in his hands. All of us were alerted and we readied our weapons. We charged towards the figure and stood there. I noticed that the guy in black cloak has a black mask, a white hair and purple eyes.

"Who are you?!" I asked. "You will not cause harm here!"

"Me?" he said, obviously he was a male judging from his voice. "That doesn't matter."

"Tell us or else!" Elesis threatened the guy.

"What matters is this!" the guy in black cloak said while he showed the rainbow-colored fruit he was holding.

"Hey! That's mine!" someone shouted but I ignored the guy.

"Give that back!" I shouted while I pointed my pistols which I called Grinder on his head.

"This… is a fake…" he said as he placed the fruit on the ground and stepped on it, squishing it.

"Hey!" someone said.

Then, a brown haired guy jumped in front of me and tried to slash the black-cloaked figure with a long scimitar.

Wait… Scimitar?

I gazed at the guy in front of me. He wears a brown, blue, and red head dress which only covers the back part of his neck from my point of view. He also wore silver leather clothes with some kind of familiar insignia, which looks like an odd one, on the cloth. He also wore silver leather pants with some kind of peculiar pattern on the sides. He wore brown leather booths. He also wore a brown cloth around his waist and he had a dagger on his waist. He also wore some kind of brown glove on his right hand that was made up like a gauntlet. Also, that gauntlet has some kind of bone on the back of the owner's hand and some little sharp bones protruding on the tip of the part where the glove's fingers are, which acts like a claw. Suddenly, I had a hunch on who was in front of me.

"P…Percyval?" I said.

He looked around and my hunch was right. It was my cousin! He had those pure black eyes and the head dress was covering his forehead and his left eye. Wait… I only remembered that he has black hair… not brown…

"It's good to see you Eli…" he said. "But this is not the right time."

"Eli… you know him?" Elesis said.

"Yeah… He's Percyval, my cousin and…" I said.

"Let's cut things short…" my cousin said. "Say, that was mine, dude."

"It's a fake…" the black-cloaked guy said.

"What do you mean?!" Percyval said.

The mysterious guy grabbed one of the mysterious fruit and showed it to us.

"See? The real one show a lustrous color but this one has a dull color. Also…" the guy took a bite on the fruit. "This just taste like some ordinary fruit picked from an orchard."

He tossed the fruit to my cousin and he caught it. He bit the fruit and tasted it.

"You're right…" Percyval said and he threw the fruit aside. "Still… I'll have to question your presence!"

My cousin pointed his scimitar on the mysterious guy. I noticed that Elesis was telling everyone to get out of here and I can already tell what will happen next.

"I don't want to do this…" the guy said.

"Me too, fella," Percyval said. "But your presence is a mystery. You must've another reason why you're here!"

Percyval tried to slash the mysterious guy but the guy blocked it with his two swords. I noticed that these swords have some blue gem on it with some kind of interesting design.

"Well, well! At least I'm going to have a little fun for myself," Percyval said as he lifted his enemy with his clawed gauntlet and he followed in pursuit while he unsheathed his dagger. He performed some combos in midair but it was all blocked. When both Percyval and the guy landed, they locked their weapons with each other.

"Not bad…" my cousin said.

"Stop it!"I shouted.

"Eli… It's no use!" Sieghart said. "We'll have to keep an eye on them so that they'll not hurt the civilians."

"Tch…" I said.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"Take this for your size!" I said as I dragged my scimitar on the ground and performed an uppercut, bringing some sand into his face.

"Heavy Sleight!" I shouted.

I slowly slammed a powerful slash on him but he dodged. Then, he rubbed the sand off his face.

"You're kinda annoying…" he said,

"Oh yeah?" I said while I sheathed my scimitar.

"Maybe you should try calming yourself…" he sighed while he shook his head.

"Who are you?! The boss of my life?" I shouted.

"No but take my advice. You're obviously getting weaker as you let your emotions take over you," he said.

"Oh really?" I said while I unsheathed my scimitar. "Let's see about that."

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

Percyval stroke at his opponent madly with his weapon but the man dodged it all. Then, Percyval quickly switched from his scimitar to his dagger and he performed close-ranged attacks with his dagger and claw and the man blocked Percyval's attacks with his dual swords. Eli's cousin managed to deflect both swords of his enemy and grabbed him before throwing him overhead and into the ground. The black-cloaked man stood up while Percyval sheathed his dagger.

"Want some more?" Percyval asked.

"Don't get too confident, kid," the man said.

"I'm no kid!" Percyval shouted.

Percyval jumped and tried to slash the guy with his claw but the guy avoided the attack. Then, the cloaked guy taunted Percyval and he just smirked. Percyval jumped in front of the mysterious guy and unsheathed both his scimitar and dagger and he held it in his left and right respectively. Then he performed a long slash with his scimitar, which was ducked. Then, he made three quick slashes with his dagger but the guy dodged all of them and ended up in ducking the last one then, Percyval brought his claw down to him but the guy rolled backwards.

Percyval threw his dagger at the guy but the latter stepped aside and the dagger hit the ground instead. Then Percyval charged with his weapon. He performed wild slashes which hit nothing but air as the mysterious guy kept dodging them. Percyval added some claw attacks to enrich his combos but still, the guy dodged it all. Percyval managed to kick his dagger, which was just beneath him, back to him and used it to add some spice to his combos but the man seems to be having fun in dodging. Percyval made a slash aimed at his opponent's head, which the opponent dodged when the said person ducked. Then, Percyval made a low sweep with the scimitar which the guy dodged when he jumped. There, Percyval smirked.

"Gotcha now!" Percyval shouted. "Sword Wave!"

Percyval grinded his scimitar on the ground and jumped while making an uppercut motion with the scimitar, releasing a thick and tall energy that was slowly moving forward. Percyval was expecting a sure hit on this one. When the wave almost hit its target, the black-cloaked man flipped backwards in midair and landed a few feet away from the wave of energy. Then, the energy dissipated, leaving a disappointed Percyval.

"So, you're just gonna dodge all day?" Percyval said while he sheathed his scimitar and dagger.

"Well, I'm just getting warmed up," the man said.

"So, you're mocking me, one of the best Sword Fighters, and telling me that I'm worthless?" Percyval said. "What a shame. You haven't seen what I can do yet,"

"Then show me what you got, Sword Fighter," the man said.

"Shall we dance?" Percyval made a polite bow.

"I'll be glad to," the man replied.

* * *

><p><em>Arme's POV<em>

Lass and I were on the Ferris wheel having a chat with each other. Then I noticed that the Ferris wheel stopped and when I looked outside, I can see a lot of things.

"I guess we're at the very top," I said.

"This position is pretty high," Lass said.

"I think I can see the marsh from here!" I exaggerated.

Then, I noticed Lass was staring at the Serdin Castle which was below us.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"I just noticed that some people went out of the castle in crowds," the Slasher said.

"Well, the only event inside the castle was the auction which was held inside one of the rooms of the castle," I said. "They might've been probably finished with the auctions."

"But it's too early," Lass said.

I looked at my other side and saw a thick mass of little dots.

"What's that?" I said as I pointed at the green plains where the dots seem to grow in numbers.

"Wait…" Lass said behind me and I looked at him.

"Those are… Those are monsters!" the Thief said. "And they're headed this way!"

"Oh no!" I was shocked when I heard that.

"I'll go inform the queen," Lass said. "You should get off this ride and tell the others."

Lass jumped off the door he just opened. I called out the ride manager to get me down quickly so that I can inform the Chase. I didn't have to alert the citizens so that they won't panic. The first ones I've met are Aira, Zero and Elyce. I've informed them and we split into two teams. Elyce and I went the opposite direction to inform the ones in the food sections while Zero and Aira headed to the games sections.

* * *

><p><em>Elesis' POV<em>

The Percyval guy got up from a fall and kicked the black-cloaked guy at the same time. He performed several slashes with his unsheathed scimitar and the black-cloaked guy countered with his dual swords. Each hit collided with each weapon and their weapons are locked on each other. Percyval gritted his teeth while the mysterious man just smiled.

"Getting tired already?" the man in black said.

"That's my line…" Percyval said as he threw back his opponent with brute force.

"Give it all you've got, kid," the man seems to be confident. "You brought this to yourself, anyway,"

"Heh heh heh heh…" Percyval just smirked at his comment. "You'll get it alright."

Percyval slammed his scimitar on the guy's swords and he unsheathed his dagger and held it in his left hand. He attempted a hit but the man moved backward. Percyval took this chance and charged towards his enemy.

"Taste this! Wind Strike!" Percyval shouted.

He stabbed his dagger on the enemy, which is a hit. Then, Percyval made a roundhouse kick which was followed by an uppercut kick, sending the enemy into the air. Percyval made a jump and prepared for another attack but he was brought back into the ground when he was kicked by the man. When Percyval got up, he noticed an incoming attack and blocked it with his claw. Then, I saw that the man prepared his foot and tried to warn Percyval but it's too late. Percyval was kicked in the gut and he flew backwards. When he got up using his acrobatic skills, he made a circle on the ground and a dust cloud came out of nowhere. The black-cloaked man was on his defenses and I noticed that Percyval clung into the ceiling just above his opponent. I smiled for a while and Percyval removed his grip on the ceiling and brought his scimitar into the man. The man quickly noticed and rolled to dodge.

"So, you got some skills after all," the man said as he got up.

"I told you that this isn't done yet," Percyval said.

"I do agree," the man said. "Now, give me everything you got."

Percyval charged towards the man and brought his sword towards the man. The black-cloaked guy grabbed his hand which was holding the scimitar and he hit Percyval's head using the man's sword's hilt. Percyval growled in pain. Then, he kicked Percyval while he's on the ground.

"As I said, don't get too confident, kid," the black-cloaked man taunted.

'Whoa… This guy might be something,' I thought. 'But I don't know if he's a friend or foe.'

"Tch… This isn't over yet!" Percyval shouted as he got up.

Percyval charged and he ducked an incoming attack before he delivered a low sweep, which made the man jump into the air. Just then, Percyval used the man's body to jump upwards and he made a downward slash, which the man blocked. Both of them were on the ground when they locked their weapons with each other again. Percyval tried to claw the man's face but he avoided it. Percyval then brought out his dagger and separated from the man. Then, he charged forward while I noticed his combo patterns. This time, he was trying to weaken the man's front defenses as he continued to assault the man's sides and back.

'Something is up…' I thought.

Then, Percyval punched his enemy's gut and readied his scimitar.

"Lightning Slash!" Percyval shouted.

He performed a quick slash, passing through the enemy and going back again with a slash. This continued and the process got quicker every second. Then, he ended up taking a while at his last attack then he launched it. Just then, he sheathed his scimitar and looked at the man, which seemed unharmed to me.

"Unbelievable…" Percyval said. "You blocked all of them…"

I was shocked when I heard that.

"Well, good reflexes can lead to a good defense…" the man said. "Now, my turn!"

The man swings his sword and Percyval blocked those. I noticed something on the man's stance, which tells me that he can kick while doing all of those slashes. My thoughts where confirmed when he kicked, which Percyval blocked with his claw. The man continued his barrage of attacks and Percyval seems to be having a hard time to counterattack.

"C'mon! You can do it!" Eli shouted.

Then, Percyval got hit in the head. I noticed that the man was slowly swinging his sword that he placed diagonally on his back a while ago.

"Ultimate X!" the man shouted.

The man jumped and made an uppercut while his sword was storing some energy. Then, he crossed his swords at each other and made a slash, making an X-shaped energy which was launched on Percyval. The Sword Fighter miraculously deflected the projectile using the gauntlet's back, which was protected by some bones, and the energy exploded somewhere away from him.

"Wait! That technique…" I said.

"It's similar to the Sieghart family's technique…" Sieghart said.

"Who are you?!" Elesis shouted.

"That technique belongs to the Sieghart family?" the man said. "Quite shocked to know that."

I charged in front of him and prepared my dual swords. I pointed one at him.

"Tell me… Why do you know my father's technique?" I said.

"Your father's?" the man asked.

"Don't play with me! Get to the question!" I said.

"Calm down, Elesis!" Ronan said but I ignored him.

"TELL ME!" I shouted but the man shrugged it off.

I was going to slash at him but someone pushed me aside and I was on the ground when I realized it. I got up and was going to charge at the guy but someone grabbed my arms.

"ELESIS! Calm down!" someone said from behind.

I looked around and saw Ronan.

"Let me go!" I tried to remove Ronan's grip on me.

"I'll take care of this…" Eli's cousin said.

"Let me do it!" I shouted.

Just then, someone punched me in the gut and everything around me was black.

* * *

><p><em>Sapphire's POV<em>

'Did just Master Sieghart punch Elesis?' I thought.

Sieghart glared at Ronan and the latter nodded, taking Elesis into a nearby chair.

"What was that for?!" my twin sister shouted at Sieghart.

"So that she won't make things worse," Master Sieghart said.

Just then, I heard the clash of two weapons and I looked at Percyval and the other guy, who were at it again.

'I wish I could help somehow,' I thought.

Percyval's scimitar hit the ground and he intercepted an incoming attack with his claw. He used his scimitar to slash the guy upwards but missed as the guy moved backwards. Percyval charged after the guy and attacked with his weapon, resulting in a clash of weapons as the cloaked guy hit back with his sword. The clash continued as both let their weapons clash at each other while they attack each other. Just then, Percyval grabbed his enemy's sword with his gauntlet and pushed the guy. Then, he grabbed the guy's cloak with his claw and threw the guy into the air. Percyval jumped and hit the man in the air but it was blocked. Then, he kicked the man towards the ground and made another attempt to slash the guy at the ground. The cloaked guy rolled sideward and Percyval's scimitar hit the ground instead. Percyval glared at his opponent after that. Just then, a door opened and I looked around and saw Lass.

"Everyone!" Lass looked around for a while. "Emergency! Monsters at the perimeter of the front gate of the kingdom!"

"What?!" we said.

"The queen requests immediate response!" Lass said. "The others can help evacuating the citizens."

"Finally…" Torn said. "It's somewhat a mission, anyway."

"I can help too… if you want to…" the guy in black cloak said.

"Who are you?" Lass asked.

"Hey! I'm not finished with you yet!" Percyval shouted.

"So, what do you prioritize, Percyval?" the guy in the cloak said. "A kingdom's safety or a silly fight which started because of a silly reason?"

I can see that Percyval's eyes widen and he looked the ground after that. I noticed that his scimitar was shaking on his hands.

"Who are you, anyway?" Percyval asked on a somewhat sad tone.

"That doesn't matter…" the guy said. "Let's get to the front gate immediately."

Then, I noticed Elesis woke up and Ronan gave her the details.

"Alright…" Elesis said. "Everyone, to the front gate!"

All of us went out of the auction room.

* * *

><p><em>Aira's POV<em>

We've met with Elesis at the castle and reported.

"I'll help with the citizens evacuate into the castle," Lass said and left.

"So, Dio, Ley, Aira and Zero," Elesis said. "Where are the others?"

"All I know is that Blade, Nate and Elyce helped in the evacuation," I said.

"Let's get into battle then," Sieghart said.

We moved towards the castle's exit and we found ourselves in the middle of the crowd.

"What now?" Elesis asked.

"Guys, I'll go ahead!" a guy with a claw said and climbed the castle's walls. "Find yourself an alternative route!"

Then, he jumped to a stall's roof and moved into another one.

"We'll be there as soon as possible!" Eli shouted.

"Who's he?" I asked.

"He's Percyval, my cousin," Eli said.

"Enough chit-chat. Let's find another way through this crowd," Sieghart said.

"We'll be using the castle's secret bunker to get across this crowd," Elesis said. "Let's go!"

* * *

><p><em>Kaistern's POV<em>

Ace and I have arrived at the front gate and we saw the crowd of monsters coming this way.

"Whoa! There are a lot of them!" Ace said. "We can't finish them alone!"

'If only I have Calamity with me…' I thought.

"We'll have to delay the monsters until the others will come," I said.

"Right!" Ace said.

"Fireballs!" I shouted.

I released two large balls of flame, which hit some of the monsters in the front line. I charged forward until I was in front of them and prepared for another attack.

"Flame Pillars!" I shouted.

I created five pillars of flame, which burned every monster in the front line.

"Lying Moon! Ace appeared in front of the monsters and gave them an attack they'll never forget.

"Lance Breaker!" some lances of holy power has aggregated in some monsters, trapping them.

"Tornado Slash!" someone started slashing a group of monsters.

"Hey! Zeta and Selena are here!" Ace shouted.

"It's good to have back-up," I said as I kicked another monster.

"Multi-Sweeps!" Zeta slashed the enemies' legs, rendering them on their backs on the ground.

"Rising Force!" I shouted and kicked the butts of each monster I passed.

"Dawn of Time!" Ace enchanted his weapon.

Then, I heard some leaves rustling in the nearby forest.

"Hee-yah!" someone shouted.

A guy with brown hair jumped from a tree and landed on a monster. He slashed the monster's head and moved into another one doing the same. He did that for five times before retreating beside us.

"Who are you?" Zeta asked.

"Sorry to interrupt. My name is Percyval and I am here to help," the person said. "Whether you like it or not."

"Well, the more the merrier!" Ace said as he slashed one of the monsters.

Zeta slashed his opponents with his scythe and I helped him by covering his backside. I punched a monster in its head.

"Cover me, Kaistern," Zeta said. "I have an idea."

Zeta backed away as I continued slamming the opponent into the ground. I dodged an incoming attack and punched a monster as I jumped and give another monster a kick that surely hurts. I continued my assault as I waited for Zeta's signal. Speaking of which…

"Get back!" Zeta shouted.

I did go back behind Zeta as he started charging towards the monsters.

"Hyper Charge!" Zeta shouted as he slammed himself into some monsters while producing a wave of mana at them. He ravaged a whole line of monsters before he stopped.

"Ruthless Flare!" I shouted as I aimed my hand in a direction away from Zeta. I unleashed a strong blast of flame which annihilated a lot of monsters. Still, there were still a lot of them.

"Where are they coming from?" I asked.

"Let's just continue this," Zeta said.

* * *

><p><em>Selena's POV<em>

"Dark Avatar!" I shouted as I created a larger version of myself.

Just then, that Percyval guy used my avatar as an object for him to climb. Just then, he jumped into a crowd of monsters and then the said monsters where brought into the air as a cloud of dust formed around him. Then, these dusts have formed into many daggers and he jumped. The daggers also moved upwards and stayed where Percyval is the apex of his jump.

"Illusion Fall!" he shouted.

Then, the daggers fell into the ground and they hit the monsters in the area around him, the ones in midair and some that are on the ground. Then, he slammed back into the ground, creating a shockwave which hit above and around him, killing some of the monsters.

"I think he's crazy," Ace said as he continued killing some monsters in front of him.

"Let him be," I said. "Dark Lance!"

Ace decided to concentrate on the job as he hacked and slash the enemies away.

* * *

><p><em>Luxus' POV<em>

'We're almost there,' I thought as I saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

After a while of running, we have exited the tunnel and saw some buildings. I also noticed that the area was deserted.

"Let's head to the gate, quickly!" Elesis shouted.

Just then, Amy and Jin came and joined us.

"Guys!" Amy said when they were near us.

"The crowd was pretty thick but we managed to get through," Jin said.

"Let's head on to battle then," Elesis said. "The others will need our help."

We ran towards the front gate, which was just some meters away from our position. When we arrived, things were pretty much handled. Zeta, Selena, Kaistern, Ace, and Percyval were giving all of their strength to thin out the army of enemies. I've noticed that Percyval was having fun jumping from one enemy after the other and killing them at the same time.

"Is he crazy?" Ronan asked.

"Typical cousin…" Eli shrugged it off and brought out her rifle. "I'm going to destroy his fun then."

She knocked out the enemy where Percyval was supposed to land and the said enemy fell into the ground, making Percyval land in a way it was unexpected to him.

"Hey!" Percyval shouted as he got himself out of the crowd of monsters.

"If you're going to jump into the enemy fleet, think first what might happen if you fail in your plan!" Eli shouted. "Gee, you could've died if I wasn't here to put a demo to you."

"Mind your own business, will ya?" Percyval said. "Anyways, I doubt you guys will just let me die in the enemy's hand."

"We're not going to help you if that happens!" Eli shouted as she fired some bullets on the crowd of monsters.

I noticed that Percyval charged into a monster. Suddenly, an Armon placed its arm over his neck.

"HELP!" Percyval shouted.

"ENOUGH OF YOUR GAMES!" Eli shouted as she shoots the enemies approaching Percyval.

I was about to shoot the enemy holding Percyval but I noticed that his scimitar was deep inside the monster's chest and he was placing the monster's arm over his neck.

'What was he thinking?!' I thought as I fired at some monsters.

"Heh heh heh… I think everyone should relax a little," Percyval said as he threw the monster on his back towards the others. "Battling in a very serious mood can be dangerous."

"Whatever…" Torn said as he fought the other monsters.

"What a weird boy you are!" Scarlet said. "Flame Cloud!"

Her pet phoenix unleashed a strong flame which burned a lot of monsters. Sapphire helped by using her trident on her opponents.

"Glacier Blast!" Sapphire summoned a large glacier above some monsters which were crushed under its weight. Then, it exploded into ice shards which damaged some nearby opponents.

"Make it rain!" I shouted as I fired a shot towards the sky and returned as a shower of beams from above and below me. Monsters around me where hit by my attack.

'I hope they won't be much of a trouble,' I thought.

"Empower!" I shouted.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

"Rifle Drive!" Eli shouted as she stabbed her knife that was attached in the rifle at the enemy while she was charging forward. Then, Eli stopped in the middle of the crowd of monsters.

"Dance Craze!" Eli spun around, firing at random monsters around her.

"Soul Shackle!" Luxus said as he stabbed his dagger named Nether Blade on the ground, making some kind of black energy which nearby enemies into it. Then, he pulled the blade out of the ground and it resulted in an explosion which threw some enemies away by some meters.

"You've got some nerve attacking the kingdom like this!" Elesis shouted as she beheaded one of the monsters.

"Quit yer yapping and attack!" Percyval said from behind her.

"I think you should swallow your own words," the black-cloaked man said while he stabbed one of the monsters.

"Who's he?" Selena asked.

"He doesn't want to give away his identity," Ronan said. "But at least he's helping in this fight."

Just then, Dante and Aura arrived at the scene.

"Thank god were here!" Dante said.

"I… I hope I can help," Aura said as she brought out her katana.

"Just be careful!" Ace shouted.

"Baliastia Lampart!" Using her katana as a bow, she fired a large fire arrow from it which hit some monsters but almost hit Ace.

"I SAID BE CAREFUL!" Ace shouted as he killed another monster.

"Oops… Sorry!" Aura sighed while she made a peace sign.

Dante charged into the enemies and when he was away from the others, he placed his hand on the ground.

"Dead Ground!" the ground beneath Dante broke down into pieces as he and the monsters fall into it. Just then, Ley came out of the whole with Dante as she placed him on a safer ground. Percyval saw this and was a bit amazed.

"Rippling Strike!" Percyval clawed some monsters like a mad feline creature clawing its prey.

Meanwhile, Kaistern was beating the enemies into a pulp.

"Blazing Devastation!" giant and violent blast of flames which burned some enemies but it didn't hit the others luckily. Just then, Kaistern felt a familiar pain.

"My head!" He shouted as he held his head.

Some monsters have approached him and Kaistern noticed this. Just then, the black-cloaked guy jumped in front of the monsters and killed them one by one.

"Are you okay?" the white-haired man said behind his mask.

"I'm fine… I guess," Kaistern said as he stood up.

"Here, take this," the man said as he presented a bottle with green liquid in it to Kaistern. "This should help ease the pain."

"What's this?" Kaistern asked.

"It's a natural painkiller made from a variety of herbs," he said. "Although it doesn't taste good, it's very effective."

"T-thanks…" Kaistern accepted the bottled a emptied its contents.

The black-cloaked guy charged towards the monsters and stabbed the biggest one he can find.

"Envenom!" his sword glowed with a shade of purple for a second before he removed his sword from his opponent, which died suddenly.

"Highlander Assault!" Sieghart performed a series of slashes with Sol and Luna before he ended in an uppercut with his Executioner.

Meanwhile, Luxus was firing in midair at his opponents. When he landed, opponents approached his front.

"Twin Teeth!" Luxus some special energy from his pistol two times before he fired the energy he had earned at the enemies.

Percyval went past Luxus and grabbed the opponent tightly with his claws. Then, he stabbed the enemy's chest before throwing it to the other enemies.

"Looks like there are lots of them," Percyval mentioned while pointing to another army which approaches the current army they're fighting.

"Where's their ringleader?" Elesis shouted.

"I don't know! I can't tell it! There's so many of them!" Ace shouted back.

"Maybe their leader is giving orders from somewhere far away?" Eli said. "But not too far away for the leader to check on the situation."

"Where it could've been hiding?" Ronan asked to himself.

Just then, a Serdin knight came. Elesis noticed this and retreated before approaching the knight.

"Help! Monsters have breached the walls and they're trying to get through the inner walls that where protecting the castle!" the Knight said. "The other members of the Chase were currently fighting them but they'll need help."

"Okay. We'll send help as soon as possible," Elesis said. "You go back to the castle and help the others."

The Knight went back inside the kingdom and Elesis went back into battle.

"I'm going to send some of you into the castle to protect the castle!" Elesis shouted.

Meanwhile, Lire was firing her arrows to prevent some monsters from advancing.

"Big Shot!" Lire fired five arrows at the same time, which were followed by three arrows.

Ryan was in Magnus Dan form, killing some of the monsters that have accumulated. He slashed some of them before he summoned a large dragon.

"Lord of Valhalla!" Ryan said as the dragon dove into the crowd of monsters.

Then, Ryan transformed back.

"There's so many of them," Ryan said.

Then, Blade approached her enemy with great speed before knocking them out cold. Nate slashed at some monsters and then he looked at Blade, who seemed to have understood something.

"Chaos Control!" Blade shouted.

"Nightmare in the Shadows!" Nate shouted.

Both of their skills annihilated a lot of monsters but still, it didn't stop those monsters from advancing.

"Lightning Bolt!" Arme unleashed a ray of electricity-filled bolt which hit the enemies.

"Phantom Blade!" Lass slashed at his enemies before ending with a powerful slash which killed them.

"The back-up should be here soon," Lass said.

"I hope they'll arrive as soon as possible," Ryan said. "Fatal Drive!"

"Ice Circular!" Arme summoned three huge blocks of ice which exploded some seconds after she did so.

"Raven Walker!" Lass spun around while he threw some kunai which exploded on monsters which were hit by his attacks.

"This monster invasion seems to be endless!" Blade shouted as she kicked a monster.

"Don't lose hope!" Ryan said. "We can do this!"

"White Monkey Technique!"

"Fancy Girl Parade!"

"Lance Breaker!"

"Ball Rush!"

"Wave of Water Spirit!"

"Abyss!"

Some monsters were thrown away from a specific place which gave entry for Jin, Amy, Selena, Zeta, Aira and Zero to join the others.

"Told 'ya!" Ryan said as he stabbed his enemy with a fast speed. "Gattling Spiral."

"Let's get this over with!" Aira said. "Bubble Spray!"

While the enemies where startled by the sudden fiasco, the Chase had their time thinning their numbers.

"Breakthrough" Zero charged towards his enemies.

"Destroyer of Heaven!" Monsters where sent into the air twice by Jin's attack before Jin made three strong punches before he delivered a blow which exploded into the monsters. After that, Amy was firing at the said monsters.

"Bomber Girl!" Amy had two companions, which where dummies which looks exactly like her, and the three of them fired at the monsters. Then, the real Amy threw a grenade at them, which exploded and damaged the monsters.

"Hyper Breath!" Zeta's beast, which he referred to as Razer, knocked up a lot of enemies into the air before they are welcomed by his hot fire breath. And not too long, Selena decided to put some nail on the monsters' heads.

"Dark Lance!" Selena summoned a lot of lances filled with dark energy which hit the enemies who were unluckily her targets.

"Blast Shoot!" Lire shot her arrows at the enemy in complete succession. Then, she fired five explosive arrows which indeed exploded on the monsters' faces.

"I can't believe that they're so many of them!" Arme said. "Gorgos' Flame!"

While the violet-haired mage summoned a Gorgos, Lass charged into the enemy lines and killed some of the monsters one by one.

"Shadow Stranger!" the Thief moved as fast as lightning as he slashed diagonally upwards many times before attacking the ground which produced a shockwave that knocked away nearby enemies. Then, Lass started throwing many kunai at the enemies.

"We must fight on!" Arme said.

Just then, Brendan came with some Dango at hand.

"BRENDAN!" Everyone shouted at him.

"What?" Brendan said.

"Stop eating and start fighting!" Razer shouted as he punched the head of a monster.

"Fight what?" Brendan was trying to spot who shouted before while eating more dango.

"Look behind you!" Lire said while she launched a barrage of arrows at the enemies.

Brendan turned around and saw a lot of monsters. He backed away because there are monsters approaching him.

"Wow. I didn't notice them," Brendan said and he ate all of his Dango. "Ell den, shall we pegin da pun?"

"Talk later after your mouth is empty," Lass said as he slashed the enemies with his katana.

"Pine…" Brendan brought out a giant sword with five ice shards surrounding an orb.

"Ays Shald Slayk!" With Brendan's mouth still full, the five ice shards on his weapon started attacking enemies. After that, he charged at his opponents and with his large sword, he lifted some opponents in the air using the said sword. Then, his weapon changed into hand cannon.

"Amma Shod!" he jumped and aimed his cannon on the enemies in the air at point blank range. Then, he fired a laser which hit the enemies on the air and some enemies below them. Then, Brendan landed and backed a bit before he pushed the contents of his mouth into his throat.

"Tasty!" Brendan said while his weapon changed into a pistol named Magnum.

"Phoenix Apollo!" the energy wiped out a lot of enemies in front of Brendan.

"Thank god Brendan's not eating anymore!" Selena said as she summoned another Dark Lance. Then, she noticed a monster approaching Razer and she impaled it with a Holy Lance. Razer took notice of this and he said thanks before killing another monster.

Meanwhile, Percyval hacked and slashed every monster he sees.

"Bullet Assault!" Eli started firing a barrage of bullets at the enemies, giving them a horizontal shower of lead.

Then, Percyval fell into the ground and a monster was going to stab him but he countered it with his scimitar and grabbed the monster and stabbed it. Then, he got up.

"There are so many of them!" Percyval argued.

"Just keep on fighting!" Elesis said.

"Hell Bound!" the mysterious guy threw his swords, which hit monsters and at the same time, produces a small explosion which can damage the enemy and the enemies surrounding it. Then, it returned to him. Afterwards, his swords rotated around him and he charged towards the enemy.

"Death Slice!" the mysterious guy just let the enemies get slashed by his weapon before he stopped and retreated for a while.

"Chaotic Spark!" a spiked ball appeared which killed lot of monsters.

"Tear Drop!" Ley's bats formed at her sides and unleashed a laser attack for those enemies who were unfortunately beneath her.

"This battle seems to be endless!" Ace said as he stabbed another monster.

"Overkill!" Torn said as he killed more monsters.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

'Tsk, tsk, tsk… These people does not know what hit them. Maybe I'll help them stop these monsters.' I thought. 'These monsters looked normal, but they aren't. They're like an undead army. The best thing to do is to kill the leader AND close the portal the leader's using.'

I've found a big monster guarding the portal in the forest. There, I readied my joust and shield before I charged in, stabbing the monster and alerting the nearby enemies. Then, I stored energy in my shield and aimed it at some monsters and at the portal.

"Blinding Light!" my shield exerted a powerful light ray which killed the monsters and broke the portal.

"Now my job here is done," I said and left.

* * *

><p><em>Someone's POV<em>

'Monsters… and some people defending the castle… Interesting…' I thought.

I held my fan and I fanned myself.

'Well, maybe I'll help 'em a little bit,' I thought.

I gestured my fan to blow some air and I summoned a whirlwind at the monsters. Just then, the monsters turned into dusts.

"What happened?" I asked myself. "Anyway, this group interested me. Humans have good teamwork."

Then, I fanned myself before I left the place.

* * *

><p><em>Brendan's POV<em>

"Phoenix Apollo!" I shot another bullet and it hit a lot of monsters.

Just then, a whirlwind suddenly brewed, bringing a lot of monsters into it.

"What was that?" Blade asked.

Suddenly, all of the enemies turned into dust and I was bit relieved.

"At least we're done," I said.

"But what happened?" Arme asked.

"We'll have to find the answer later," Lass said.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

I beheaded another monster and jumped to land into another monster when it suddenly turned into dusts and I landed on the ground instead.

"Hey!" I shouted.

"W-what just happened?" Aura said as she sheathed her katana.

"They disappeared all of a sudden…" Sieghart said.

"I don't know the exact reason why it happened," Mari said.

"Well, at least they're gone and the castle is safe, I assume," Ace said.

"Wait! The others who were fighting the monsters inside, let's help them!" Elesis said.

Just then, a Serdin Knight came and reported to Elesis that the monsters inside the kingdom suddenly turned into dust.

"Okay. Get back to the castle and check on the injured. Tend to their injuries as soon as possible," Elesis said.

The Knight left and I noticed that the mysterious guy was moving away from us.

"Hey!" I approached him and unsheathed my scimitar. "We're not finished yet!"

"Sorry but I still have more important things to attend to," the guy said.

"Wait!" Elesis said as she approached the two of us. "Can you please tell me who you are?"

"Sorry but my identity is not important here," the guy said.

"Please tell us anything that will identify you. We might meet next time and I'll be sure to question you!" Elesis said.

"Alright… Call me Shadow then," Shadow said as he left.

While Shadow walked away, I was about to stop him when Elesis stopped me.

"He's not a foe so leave him be…" Elesis said.

"That lucky bastard! You should've been dead by now!" I shouted at Shadow.

"No, YOU should've been dead by now, cousin," Eli said. "It's nice to see you but what are you doing here?"

"It's because it's my decision to be here," I smirked at Eli. "Anyway, I'll need some good rest."

"I agree!" Sieghart said.

"I'm glad that this is all over!" Sapphire said.

"Finally… some rest!" Scarlet said as she sat down on the ground, exhausted.

Everyone laughed as we went back to the castle to meet the others and give a status report before we went back to the Grand Chase mansion. I'll have to say that it's more elegant inside.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of the LONG chapter. ^^<strong>

**Percyval: And my identity is revealed.**

**Eli: But there are more mysterious persons… -.-'**

**Me: That is just a part of my GRAND STORY! MWAHAHAHAHAHA**

**Percyval: A claw to your head is more like it.**

**Me: Anyway, I have a goodie for you guys IF AND ONLY IF this chapter receives SIX SPECIALLY UNIQUE REVIEWS, that is six reviews that are pertaining to the story (comments or corrections on the story) that is reviewed by the author. Also, one review per author. The decision will be made final whether I'll give it or not after Chapter 6 or 7. It depends, guys.**

**Eli: So what are you waiting for?**

**Percyval: REVIEW! **

**Notes:**

**1. Kildan corporation… I just made it up.**

**2. From this chapter onwards, Eli has a name for her weapons. Her dual pistols were now named Grinder, her Sniper was named Stinger and her rifle was named Punisher.**

**3. Another mysterious guy named Shadow! Who's he? Find out as the story progresses.**

**4. "Prince" is Percyval!**

**5. Eli remembered her cousin before with black hair, not brown! The reason will be later on the story.**

**6. Percyval's current class job is Sword Fighter and it is his first.**

**7. HINT: Percyval was trembling when Shadow told him a certain phrase. THAT PHRASE is your hint.**


	6. Eclipse

**Me: Hi guys! Sorry if I was not able to update in a LONG while.**

**Percyval: Current reviews in chapter five… is two.**

**Eli: No goodies?! *pout***

**Me: Don't worry. The decision will be finalized on the next chapter. So if anyone wants a goodie, please review…**

**Eli: FOUR MORE REVIEWS ON CHAPTER FIVE THEN!**

**Me: That's the spirit…**

**Eli: You don't seem to be in the mood, author…**

**Me: Eh? Don't mind me. Let's start the story…**

**There was silence for a while.**

**Eli: Okay…**

**Me: Disclaimer please…**

**Percyval: Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase and the playable characters. He only owns his OCs and the story.**

**Me: This chapter is special for one of my OCs…**

* * *

><p>Ch. 6: Eclipse<p>

_Eli's POV_

I woke up a little bit irritated. I've realized that I've fallen off my bed during my sleep.

"My head hurts…" I muttered to myself.

I stood up and changed into a new set of clothes before I went out of my room. The corridor was silent since its still 5:30 in the morning. I went down the stairs and decided to go outside. The cold breeze hit my skin and it sends me some shivers. Yesterday's events were really tiring and I'm wondering if I have given my best. I was still sloppy in my opinion, even with the everyday training. Suddenly, I feel furious at myself. I don't know why but I feel frustrated.

'Why?' I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Mari's POV<em>

I entered my lab with a loud yawn.

"Okay. I'll prioritize the blueprints first…" I said as I checked on the blueprints. 'It's almost complete. There's only three parts missing…'

Then, I decided to do some research on the missing parts. After I did so, it seems that the three missing parts are the crucial parts of the thing that I'm making and they aren't that easy to find.

'What to do?' I thought.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"Oh! The sun's rising…" I said.

The sunrise somehow gives me the energy which I needed. After all, I've been on the roof all night.

'Still, I wish that the fruit was real! I was so close!' I thought.

I don't know if I still have time to find the fruit. I do wish that I have more time. I do wish that IT never happened. I sighed at myself.

"I'm not even worth it, father…"

Then, I shouted. I don't even know why but it eases me when I did so.

"I'm just a failure…" I softly said.

I just sat there for a while. Then, I heard some footsteps and I looked around to see Eli.

"Cousin?" Eli asked. "Is something-"

"No, nothing. I'm perfectly fine," I said.

"I haven't even finished my question yet," Eli said. "Something IS really bothering you."

"Alright. You win," I said.

"Say, why are you here, anyway?" Eli asked. "Shouldn't you be back at…"

"I don't want to talk about it Eli," I said.

"Oh, come on!" Eli said. "I'll tell you that holding your emotions to yourself will do you no good."

"Then apply it to yourself!" I said.

"U-uhm…" Eli said. "Can you tell me at least why you're not with uncle?"

"Fine…" I said.

* * *

><p><em>Brendan's POV<em>

"Finished!" I silently said to myself with joy.

I just finished making a contraption so that when the new guy will get out of his room, he'll get a surprise he'll never forget. I just smirked at myself at my evil plan. Then, I decided to get myself out of here so that no one will suspect me as the culprit.

Then, I went to the living room where I met Kaistern, Ace and Jin. I decided to join their little chat since there's nothing left for me to do.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

"So, you're travelling?" I said.

"Yeah. Anything bad about it?" my cousin asked.

"No…" I said.

"So how about we go down and meet the others," Percyval jumped down and clung to the rough edges of the windows to climb down safely. I had another special way of going down, namely using the stairs.

As I got down the stairs, I saw four persons chatting while sitting at the couch. Percyval suddenly appeared at the door and waved at me. I waved back at him.

"So, what are you guys talking about?" I asked as I approached the four.

"Just some things…" Kaistern said.

"Care if we join?" Percyval asked.

"Sur- Wait! How did you end up there?" Brendan said.

"Well, I was on the roof all day and it's just one single drop from there to the entrance," my cousin said. "Why did you ask anyway?"

Just then, something comes into my mind.

"Brendan! Are you planning something?!" I asked sternly while firmly tapping my left foot continuously. "I hope that there weren't any pranks today…"

"Uhm…" Brendan said, obviously he's hiding something.

"Do you want me to check on my cousin's room and pour the prank on you?" I said.

"Sure, why not. I'll even go and check it myself," Brendan said.

"DON'T LIE! I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE PLACED SOMETHING!" I shouted.

"I didn't! Anyway, I'm going to check on it anyway," Brendan said.

"THEN WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!" I shouted again.

"I'm on it!" Brendan said.

He stood up quickly and was about to go upstairs but we heard a shout.

"BRENDAN!" Zeta's clear voice rang throughout the mansion.

"You are so dead," I simply said.

Just then, Zeta appeared out of nowhere with his scythe and wildly hacked and slashed the Omni Switcher. One thing I've noticed is Zeta is wet and covered in flour.

"Percyval, it's a good thing you're at the roof the whole time," Jin said as he sighed.

"It's a good thing alright. Can I join the fun too?" Percyval offered.

"Feel free to," I said.

"What the…" Brendan shouted.

"Whatever you want, Percyval," Kaistern said.

Percyval cooperated with Zeta by trying to trap Brendan in a corner. Brendan avoided incoming attacks from Zeta while Percyval forces him into a corner. I giggled a bit at these guys who acted like kids.

"Kids…" I muttered.

"Look who's talking," Percyval shouted.

"Look WHO'S talking!" I shouted.

"Why not settle down for a minute, will ya?" Ace said.

"Then say that to Zeta and Brendan and see if it'll work," I said pointing to the cat-and-mouse chase of the two said persons.

"Miss!" Brendan said as he dodged a swipe of Zeta's scythe.

"Looks like impossible to me," Kaistern said.

I heard two things, Jin sighing and some footsteps. It seems that the footsteps originated from Mari. While Mari went closer, Sieghart magically appeared out of nowhere and stopped Zeta and Brendan only, since they are the only ones who are going out of control.

"Guys, see you later," Jin said and left.

"Sure," Percyval said.

"It seems to me that it's almost done…" Mari said to me.

"What's almost done?" I said.

"The blueprint," Mari said.

"Really?" I said while excitement filled me.

"Still, we'll need three more critical parts, I'm afraid," Mari said. "Project Lorem Ipsum depends on these items."

"Project Lorem Ipsum, such a weird name…" Ace commented.

"Lorem Ipsum is the weapon's name according to the prints that we've acquired before," Mari said. "It's weird that we must start building it at the time where the moon overpowers the sun."

"Maybe I'll be thinking of a new name…" I said. "Anyway, what are these three parts?"

"The three parts are named Energy Crystal, Power Core and Balancer," Mari said.

"Balancer? I think I've heard the name before…" Percyval said.

"Me too. But I can't point my finger on where I heard it," I said.

"You two should've heard it since this item was famous in Atum," Mari said. "After my research, this item was known to be created in Atum long ago but the location seems to be unknown."

"Then, how are we going to find it?" Zeta asked.

"According to my research, the materials needed to make a Balancer are found near Mirage Desert." Mari said.

"So, is it possible to find a Balancer there?" Sieghart said.

"Either that or gather the ingredients and make the Balancer," Mari said. "But it's better if we just find the Balancer itself."

"So, what about the other two?" I asked.

"The Energy Crystal is a mineral that are made in great pressure and cold," Mari said.

"Great pressure?" I asked.

"And cold?" Percyval said.

"I've have a hunch. Is this item found in the Altar of Balance?" Sieghart said.

"Correct," Mari said.

"Got it!" I said. "So, where is this Power Core?"

"It's used in the machines of the dwarves. Maybe we could buy one in their capital city,"

"So, that's it, huh" Percyval said.

"So, we'll have to get them one by one," Brendan said. "What item should we pursue first?"

"That's not necessary," Sieghart said.

"He's right," Mari said.

"You know Brendan, have you heard the saying 'divide and conquer'?" Eli said.

"So, what do you mean?" Brendan said.

"She means that we'll have a group searching for each item," Kaistern said.

"And that means we'll need three groups," Ace said.

"So, we'll just get everyone here and discuss everything," Brendan said.

"Not so fast!" Percyval said.

"What?" Brendan said.

"It's better if we just have four persons each group so that each group's movement won't be restricted," Mari said.

"Oh, I get it!" Brendan said.

"But we're just eight here…" Ace said.

"Let's see, Mari, Sieghart, Ace, Kaistern, Percyval, Eli, the bastard, and me," Kaistern said. "Yep, we're just eight here."

"Thank you for stating the obvious, idiot," Brendan countered.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Zeta said as he raised his scythe.

Zeta was about to strike Brendan but his scythe was blocked by one of Sieghart's cutlass. The other one was pointed at Brendan's nose.

"Stop it, you two!" Sieghart shouted.

I was silent for a while. I can't point it but somehow, that felt familiar. Is it the phrase or the action- or maybe both?

"I'll go get someone to help us," I suddenly said.

I don't even know why I said that but I suddenly said it.

"Okay, go on," Mari said.

I left and went to find someone whom I might be able to recruit in the hunt.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

"Now, I have someone in mind to join us. I'll be leaving for a while," Sieghart said. "And you two should better not fight or the both of you will have broken bodies before the search even begins!"

Then, Sieghart sheathed his weapons before he left.

"Heh heh heh. You two are getting on Sieghart's nerves," Percyval said.

"It's because of him!" The two people involved said while pointing to the other one.

"It's best for you to stop if you don't want to be in bed for a month," Mari said.

"That's some rest!" Percyval said. "I even doubt that I want to stay in bed for that long!"

"Well, at least we know that there's no one who can do worse," Ace said.

"Maybe you do know someone who might do the equivalent," Mari said.

"If you're talking about Torn, I'd doubt that. He has no time for some childish acts," Ace said.

"I'll have to agree on the 'childish acts'. Just look at them," Percyval said.

Brendan and Zeta are staring at each other like they are trying to melt the other one.

"It seems so," Kaistern said.

"Looks like the kids are having fun," a girlish voice was heard.

"Eli, you're back!" Percyval said.

"Yeah, and I've got C- I mean Zero with me," Eli said.

"Hmm? It seems like you've bit your tongue," Ace said.

"No! I'm fine," Eli said with a dull look.

Just then, Sieghart came back with Elesis and Blade.

"I'm back. Did the two behave?" Sieghart asked.

"Like two oppositely charged molecules which have negated each other," Mari said.

"Okay…" Sieghart said.

"Still, we're one person short," Kaistern said.

"I can help," someone said.

Everyone looked at the stairs and saw Dio descending from it.

"I've heard everything you have discussed just now, minions, so proceed to the next plan," Dio said.

"Okay. We'll have to form three groups of four members each," Mari said.

"It's best to separate Zeta and Brendan," Sieghart said.

"I recommend that too," Eli said.

"So, I'll analyze the situation for a while…" Mari said.

Mari brought out her notes and pen and started flipping the pages and writing something on it. After a while, she closed it.

"First, the ones who should hunt for the Energy Crystal are Eli, Brendan, Zero and me," Mari said. "I'll also suggest that Eli will lead this group,"

"Sure," Eli said.

"Next, the ones who will search for the Power Core are Percyval, Ace, Kaistern and Dio," Mari said. "Percyval, since it's your first time here, why not be the leader?"

"Eh? Come again?" Percyval said.

"I said that you'll be leading the search for the Power Core," Mari said.

"L-leading? N-no! I won't do it," Percyval said.

"Why not?" Sieghart said.

"I…" Percyval said.

"Come on! We'll just test your capabilities on leading a group," Sieghart said.

"T—t—test?" Percyval said while seemingly tensed.

"Cousin, what's wrong?" Eli asked.

"N—no. I just can't do the job," Percyval said as he turned away from the others.

"Then I'll just have to do it," Kaistern said.

"Okay then," Mari said. "And lastly, Sieghart, Elesis, Zeta and Blade will go and find the Balancer."

"And I'll be the leader," Sieghart said.

"Gramps!" Elesis said.

"Not now, red," Sieghart said.

"And that's it," Mari said.

"So, we'll just need to procure the items and get back here," Eli said.

"That's ideally the objective," Mari said. "Then, we'll have to go now."

"Right!" the others said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Fin.<strong>

**Eli: Yay! We're almost there!**

**Me: Excited as always Eli.**

**Eli: Who would not be if you're in my place?**

**Percyval: …**

**Me: What's the silence, Percyval?**

**Percyval: Nothing.**

**Eli: Please review!**

**Notes:**

**1. Looks like Percyval were desperate to find something. Reason? In the next following chapters.**

**2. Brendan thought that no one will suspect him as the culprit, but everyone knows that he's the prankster. Ironic, isn't it?**

**3. Percyval is actually younger than Eli.**

**4. Recall that the blueprints here are the blueprints acquired in Chaos Begins. The fruit of the blueprints is Project Lorem Ipsum.**

**5. Lorem Ipsum means multipurpose. You'll know the reason much later.**

**6. Three items with three groups means three adventures! Do you know what I mean? ^^,**

**7. Eli seems to have a recollection of something. I think it's obvious what kind of recollection it is since 'she bit her tongue'. ^^**

**8. 'Like two oppositely charged molecules that have negated each other' is like 'the two who dislike each other behaved quite well with each other'.**

**9. A fact is that Percyval rejected leadership. A thing to write in one's mind, I'll say.**


	7. Mirage in the Desert

**Me: Hello everyone!**

**Eli and Percyval: Great!**

**Me: What's great?**

**Eli: I've figured out what you meant by 'three items and three groups means three adventures' author.**

**Me: Much as I expected. So, does anyone else, specifically the readers, have figured it out yet?**

**Percyval: I hope so.**

**Me: If you haven't figure out yet, why not check how many chapters do we have today?**

**Percyval: Remember, last updated chapter is chapter 6.**

**Me: That's enough clues. I think it's obvious though. Disclaimer?**

**Eli: My turn! Silent Treecko doesn't own any part of Grand Chase. He only owns this story and the OCs he owned and willing to let everyone use it with permission. The others don't belong to him except for some of the ideas, which were built from his experience in his life.**

**Me: Uhm… Too much?**

**Eli: I think so.**

**Me: Well, being a college student soon is something I should consider too…**

**Eli: Author?**

**Me: Well, let's get this started while we have the time!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 7: A Mirage in the Desert<p>

_Third Person View_

Sieghart, Elesis, Zeta and Blade have arrived at the scorching hot desert. The group had to find or make a Balancer with the ingredients which were within the desert.

"So, there are two objectives in this search," Sieghart said. "One, find the Balancer and two, gather the ingredients to make a Balancer,"

"Well, Mari did show us an image of the Balancer," Zeta said.

"And the ingredients seems to be just around the desert," Blade said.

"So this will be a piece of cake!" Elesis declared.

"That's not going to be easy," Sieghart said. "I'm worried about the creatures of this desert,"

"Uh… right!" Elesis said.

"So, let's get going. Once an objective is accomplished, mission is complete," Sieghart said.

Just then, there was an earthquake that alerted the group. The group stayed on their current positions until the earthquake subsided. As the earthquake stopped, the group was glad that it did.

"That was unexpected," Zeta said.

"It sure is!" Blade said.

"I hope nothing bad happened," Elesis said.

"Wait! I've never heard of earthquakes in deserts before," Sieghart said.

"Me too!" Elesis said.

"I wish that Eli or Percyval was with us," Zeta said.

"Yeah. They'll know better if desert earthquakes are natural," Sieghart said. "That doesn't matter now. Let's proceed."

Just then, the group noticed a cloud of dust nearby. They also heard some sounds which seemed to get louder every second. Alerted, the group prepared for themselves for the worse to happen. A herd of reptiles and large insects approached their position.

"What the-" Sieghart said.

"A stampede?" Zeta said.

"They seem to be agitated," Blade added.

"We have no choice but to cut through them," Elesis said. "They are far too many and far too quick to simply dodge them,"

"I agree," Sieghart said. "These insects will harm us if we don't harm them."

"I hate to do this," Blade said.

"We have no choice," Zeta said. "Let's go, Razer."

Sieghart slashed a Sand Ergate while Elesis finished it off with two slashes. Meanwhile, Zeta was mercilessly slicing some Frillzard. Blade shot a Sand Dinergate once before she dashed forward and finished it off with three kicks. More Sand Ergates, Sand Dinergates and Frillzards approached the group.

"Their numbers are unusual," Elesis said.

"I also noticed that," Sieghart said.

"Doesn't matter," Zeta said. "Tornado Slash!"

Zeta spun his way through the crowd of monsters, slashing any unlucky monsters which were on his way.

"Right, kid," Sieghart said. "Phantom Rush!"

Sieghart rushed towards the monsters while he was surrounded by a purple aura. Elesis expertly slashed some monsters that have come closer to her. As for Blade, she used her speed to finish off some Sand Ergates and Sand Dinergates.

"Cross Slash!" Elesis disoriented some of the monsters by producing large energy in front of her and Sieghart and Zeta had the glory of finishing them off. Blade worked on the far ones, travelling from one place to another with great speed.

"Reckless Rolling!" Blade wildly spun her way through some monsters.

"Seems like they're numbers are thinning," Sieghart said.

"But what caused this?!" Elesis said.

"Seems like they're agitated!" Blade said as she stopped besides Elesis.

"Agitated? For what reason?" Elesis asked.

"I can't tell," Blade said.

Just then, a Giant Frillzard appeared with some monsters and approached the group.

"What now?" Blade asked.

"It would be piece of cake, hedgehog!" Sieghart said.

"You know the solution! Attack!" Elesis said.

Elesis slashed the head of a Frillzard and continued slashing at every enemy within her reach. Sieghart, on the other hand, was flawlessly kicking or slashing any enemy he wants. Zeta dealt deadly, heavy blows to each small enemy and Blade has her bet in her speed as she delivered light but speedy attacks to the opponent. As the enemy line thinned, the next target of the four of them was the Giant Frillzard.

"Ready?" Sieghart asked.

"Right!" the other three replied.

Sieghart jumped over the Giant Frillzard, which caught the monster's attention. Elesis took the chance and went right in front of the giant lizard and gripped her sword tightly.

"Meteor Slash!" Elesis jumped into the air and fired flames into the monster. The monster howled in pain. Zeta and Blade took the left and the right side of the monster respectively and dashed forward.

"Meteor Impact!" Zeta shouted.

"Merciless Shooting!" Blade shouted.

Meteors and bullets landed on the monster's skin as it cried in pain. It didn't have any time to recover as Sieghart jumped and buried the tip of his Claymore on the lizard's head. The metal penetrated through the skull, ending its misery once and for all.

"Looks like I'll have to finish the leftovers," Sieghart said. "Mortal Impact!"

Every last monster within the vicinity was sucked towards Sieghart as he produced violet flame-like energy which killed the monsters.

"I feel sorry for them," Blade said.

"Let's get going," Sieghart said. "We didn't come here for nothing," he added.

The group proceeded deeper into the desert. As they did so, more small beetle-like insects about one to two feet tall suddenly appeared and were killed either by slashing or shooting, in Blade's case.

"There are a lot of the stupid bugs!" Elesis complained as she slashed another one.

"These are the Sand King's offspring, no doubt about it," Sieghart said as he killed two in one slash.

"Do you think that it was affected like the other creatures were?" Blade asked.

"What if it's just a coincidence that we came here and found them on a rampage or something?" Zeta suggested.

"You have a point there, kid," Sieghart said.

"Gramps, I don't think that concerns us," Elesis said. "Anyway, we're here to retrieve Balancer ingredients or the Balancer itself."

"Speaking of ingredients, we haven't acquired anything yet," Blade said as she inspected the list of ingredients.

"I'm sure that those ingredients we're all just scattered all over the desert," Sieghart said while slashing more of the insects.

"It'll be nice if we trip into the Balancer itself," Zeta said as he swung his scythe around him, killing insects.

"That would be convenient! Too convenient, in fact," Elesis slashed more pesky insects.

Just then, the Sand King appeared out of nowhere and charged at the team. The team dodged by jumping away from their current positions. Knowing this, they have charged towards the Sand King. The said monster flapped its wings as fast as it could, blowing harsh winds while doing so. The four was immobilized by the wind and they covered their eyes. Blade fired a bullet at the monster and it stopped. As soon as they recovered, Sieghart slashed its side pretty deeply. Zeta transformed into Razer and Razer stepped on the monster and jumped.

"Ball Rush!" he shouted.

The giant bug was hit with multiple fireballs behind it and landed on the ground for a bit. Elesis slammed her sword on the ground and released a wave of energy while shouting "Sonic Wave," which hit the monster's left side.

"Death Bell!" Sieghart delivered damage by releasing aura from his sword while spinning twice. Then, Blade went near the monster while holding an emerald.

"Get away guys!" Blade shouted and the other three did move away from her. Then, she held her emerald tightly.

"Chaos Controlled Blast!" red and blue waves were shot out and the waves hit the Sand King and it felt great pain. The waves disappeared moments later as Elesis, Sieghart and Razer delivered the finishing blow.

"Mega Slash!" Elesis shouted.

"Iron Crusher!" Sieghart shouted.

"Hyper Breath!" Razer shouted.

The Sand King fell into the ground with a loud thump. Immediately, it got up and tried to flee.

"You're not going anywhere this time!" Elesis gave chase to the monster when the ground beneath her unexpectedly collapsed, making Elesis fall into the depths below.

"Elesis!" Blade shouted and went near the hole first before the other two approached the same hole.

"What should we do?" Razer asked.

"What else? Jump!" Sieghart jumped into the hole and the two followed hesitantly.

The three were floating in midair when the passageway had a sharp turn, forcing them to slide downward while going right. The passageway was almost like a slide with lots of twists and turns. Sieghart landed first on safer ground and he had a content sigh which didn't last long as the other two landed on top of him.

"Get off of me!" Sieghart shouted.

The two quickly got off of Sieghart and Razer transformed back into Zeta. Sieghart stood up and cleaned his clothes from dust. They noticed that there are lights in the room.

"Where are we?" Zeta asked.

"Dunno," Sieghart said.

"Where's Elesis?" Blade asked.

"Right here!" Elesis responded as she waved from a distance not far from their position.

Elesis approached the three of them.

"Watch where you're going, red!" Sieghart shouted at Elesis.

"Well, I don't know the ground will collapse, gramps!" Elesis shouted.

The two was about to fight each other but Blade cut them off as she noticed something.

"I think we're in a secret lab of some sort," Blade said.

The group looked at the room they're in. There are flasks, spatulas, mortar and pestle, and even complex machines they've never seen before.

"It looks like it," Elesis said.

"But what is a lab doing here?" Zeta asked.

"Maybe…" Sieghart looked at his right side and saw something interesting. He approached the item on the table and inspected it. Elesis saw Sieghart and quickly approached him.

"That's!" Elesis said.

"Hey! An ingredient!" Blade said.

"What's it doing here?" Sieghart said.

"If we found an ingredient here, maybe this is where they produce those Balancers," Elesis said.

"Then let's find the little rascal," Sieghart said.

They searched around the room but they found a door instead.

"Maybe this is where they put it?" Zeta said.

"Then let's break it down!" Elesis shouted.

Elesis gave the door one of her powerful kicks. However, the door didn't budged a bit and Elesis felt the pain at her leg and flinched. She hugged her leg while she hopped continuously.

"Looks like the door won't budge," Blade said.

"Wait a minute!" Sieghart saw something and moved to the side of the door. He noticed that the hinges are rusty. Sieghart slashed the hinges into two and the door fell to the other side. There, they found many small, black machines each stored in a protective case. Sieghart looked at the Balancer's description and it fit on the small parts that are laid in front of them. Elesis had also stopped from hopping around hopelessly.

"Well, we found them," Sieghart gladly said.

"Great!" Elesis picked up one of the parts.

"It seems to be in perfect condition," she added.

"Let's get out of here," Zeta said.

"How?" Blade asked.

"We'll try using that tunnel," Sieghart pointed at the tunnel that was in the room where they discovered the Balancers.

The group explored the tunnel and later on, they found earth-made stairs. They ascended the stairs and found a trapdoor. Sieghart pushed the heavy trapdoor and a strong light shone upon them. They exited the small passageway and they found themselves near the entrance of the desert.

"That was easy," Sieghart said.

"Let's just go home, gramps," Elesis said.

"We should, you know," Zeta said.

"Yeah!" Blade shouted.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of Chapter 7.<strong>

**Eli: Next is chapter 8!**

**Me: Don't forget to review in this chapter!**

**Notes:**

**1. The monsters of the Mirage Desert… I don't know if they have different names in other countries so I'll explain them now.**

** a. Sand Ergate – the inferior ant**

** b. Sand Dinergate – the more superior ant**

** c. Frillzard – the frill-necked lizards**

** d. Giant Frillzard – a giant frill-necked lizard**

** e. Sand King – boss of the Mirage Desert**

**2. By the way, Mirage Desert is the 4****th**** dungeon in Atum/Alcubra.**

**3. Balancer, check. Two more.**


	8. Energy Crystal Extraction

**Me: Figured it out guys?**

**Eli: They should've already figured it out.**

**Me: Anyway, disclaimer.**

**Percyval: Silent Treecko doesn't own anything from Grand Chase. He owns the story and his OCs. Other OCs belongs to the ones who made and claim theirs.**

**Me: Let's start.**

* * *

><p>Ch. 8: Energy Crystal Extraction<p>

_Third Person View_

Eli and the crew have arrived at the forever freezing land of the Altar of Balance. The very low temperature gave them a chilling experience that they will never forget, especially on the ones new here.

"It's… very cold… here," Eli said as she hugged herself for warmth.

"Let's move quickly," Mari said.

"We only need to find the Energy Crystal, right?" Eli said.

"Yeah," Mari said.

"I can't… stand the cold here!" Brendan said.

"Anyway, the crystal seems to sparkle at direct sunlight," Eli said. "I hope the weather will cooperate with us today."

"Let's start the search," Zero said.

"Okay. Let's do this, guys!" Eli shouted as she pulled the operating rod on her rifle.

"This is going to be easy, still…" Brendan said with Pure Frost by his clutches.

"And after this, you'll receive a punishment because of the prank you made," Eli smirked.

"Hey now! I think I have enough punishments," Brendan scratched his head.

Mari and Zero were just silent in their own thoughts as they started the search. They ran down the freezing path as they searched for the item they needed. After a while, they met some monsters on their way. The monsters gave them a snarl as soon as they noticed.

"I think they're not friendly," Brendan said.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious!" Eli shouted.

"Quiet, you two!" Zero said at them.

Just then, the monsters charged towards their positions.

"Too late," Mari said. "Backlash!"

Mari countered the incoming monsters with a rising strike of her Soul Taker.

"Then, let's fend off these monsters!" Brendan said.

"Ahead of you!" Eli said. "Bullet Shower!"

Eli rained the enemy front with bullets. As she stopped for a reload, Brendan attacked while dragging his weapon and made a powerful bash at a number of enemies. Zero also attacked posthaste with his Grandark.

"Aurora Break!" Brendan dragged Pure Frost on the ground and hastily sends some wave energy that has the characteristics of an aurora. Meanwhile, Zero hacked the enemies with Grandark.

"Gran X!" Zero swung his sword once, lifting opponents into the air while storing energy in his weapon. Then, he released the energy stored towards the enemies and into the ground.

"Trisentinial! Third form, Clawver!" Brendan's weapon changed into a chained claw and he dragged an enemy towards him.

"First form, Arrowen!" Brendan's weapon changed into an arrow with a long chain and without even waiting for a second, he shouted "Arrow of Reaction," sending fast strikes on the enemy he just dragged. Meanwhile, Mari's weapon took out a lot of opponents while she's still standing in the same position. Zero was fast on his feet as he dodged an incoming ice attack and countered with a bash of his weapon.

"Bring it on!" Eli shouted as she fired her rifle's load on her enemies until it went empty. After a quick reload, she noticed a tiger which lunged at her. Jumping to the side, Eli dodged the attack and stabbed the tiger with the built-in knife at the end of her rifle. Then, a lot of enemies aggregated in front of them.

"No problem," Brendan confidently said as he stepped forward with a magnum in hand. Then, he shouted "Phoenix Apollo," and a giant phoenix went through the crowd of monsters. A moment later, they're killed by the strong explosion.

"This is a breeze," Brendan said as he walked forward confidently.

"My, my, someone sure is confident," Eli commented as she replaced her rifle's load with a new one.

Just then, Eli unexpectedly heard a weak beeping sound. Then, she noticed a small flashing light beneath Brendan's feet. Realizing the situation, Eli ordered Brendan to stop.

"What now?" Brendan argued but he was stopped as Eli shouted "Do not remove your feet or you'll die!"

With that statement, Brendan has frozen stiff while Eli approached Brendan. Eli wiped away the snow around Brendan's foot and all four of them saw a shiny metal. Eli cleared more of the snow and after a while, Eli was alerted at what she saw.

"I knew it! A mine," Eli said. "And this is no ordinary one either."

"Mine?" Zero said. "Who could've placed it?"

"That seems dangerous!" Mari said.

"The one who placed it must be good at this," Eli said.

"Then I'll just use Transato and get out of this mess," Brendan said.

"Wait! This mine will explode as soon as you loosen pressure on it," Eli said. "I doubt that your spell will save you from the explosion."

"Then what should we do?" Mari asked.

"It's a good thing that a good teacher of mine thought me how to act at this kind of situation back at our place," Eli said. "It's a little bit tricky so I need everyone's cooperation."

"Okay," the three of them answered back.

"Mari and Zero, please get into a safe distance away from here," Eli asked the two which they followed.

"Now Brendan, do not move your foot," Eli asked Brendan.

"Thanks for the reminder but I think my foot is frozen enough that I can't move it," Brendan said.

"Damn it Brendan, be serious!" Eli shouted.

"Sorry…" Brendan apologized.

"Good thing I have an extra knife with me," Eli brought out her combat knife and placed it carefully under Brendan's foot.

'Take it easy, Eli,' Eli thought to herself as she tried to place the knife at the right spot.

After a while, Eli looked at Brendan and concentrated at the knife in hand.

"Now Brendan! Use Transato and get out of here!" Eli said.

"Right! Transato!" Brendan teleported to where Mari and Zero are, and left Eli in the predicament. She was concentrating on her knife as she put more pressure on it. Then, she placed another hand on the blade of the knife to make sure the explosive won't go off.

'No good. I can't hold the pressure anymore if I'll use my hands. Guess I'd have no other choice,' Eli thought.

Then, Eli carefully but quickly swapped the hand at the knife's blade with her foot, leaving her at the situation which was almost the same with Brendan before, the only difference was she was sitting.

"Eli!" Brendan noticed Eli's move and tried to help her but Zero blocked him.

"No, Brendan! It's too dangerous!" Zero said.

"But…" Brendan said.

"Leave it to Eli," Mari said. "She knows what's best for the situation."

Brendan can't do anything than watch Eli get out of the trouble he put her in. A moment later, Eli sighed and spoke a few words.

"Guys, by the count of three, wish me good luck…" Eli said.

"ELI?" Brendan shouted.

"Now shut up and let me concentrate!" Eli shouted.

"Good luck, Eli," Zero said.

"ZERO!" Brendan scolded him.

"One…" Eli said.

'Eli…' Brendan thought.

"Two…" Eli said.

'I'm sorry…' Brendan thought.

"THREE!"

Eli stood up and tried to run away from the mine. Then, a huge explosion covered the scene unfolding while Mari created a barrier to shield themselves from debris and explosion.

"NO!" Brendan cursed himself at his carelessness as the explosion was still taking place.

As the explosion subsided, Mari's barrier also subsided. When their vision of the area was cleared, they saw Eli lying on the cold snow. They approached her and they where shocked at what they saw. Eli didn't even have a single scratch on her.

"Eli?" Brendan said.

Then, Eli opened her eyes and sat from her position. She scratched her head and asked "What happened?"

"Well, we thought you were engulfed by that explosion," Zero said.

"Eli! I'm glad you're okay!" Brendan tried to hug Eli but he received a smack on the face from the Rifle Assassin.

"You jerk! I don't know what could've happened to me back there!" Eli shouted at her.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm very sorry!" Brendan repeatedly apologized.

Just then, Eli was in her thoughts.

'I couldn't have survived that one but- how did I survived that?' Eli thought. 'Ugh! Why can't I remember what happened?!'

Just then, Eli noticed that her clothes had a bit of dust.

'Dust? That isn't possible in this climate, is it?' Eli thought.

Eli wiped away the dust and stood up. Then, she noticed that Brendan hasn't stopped from his apologies.

"Okay! Stop that already!" Eli shouted. "It's getting annoying."

Brendan stopped.

"You could learn a thing or two from a master," Eli said while she sighed.

"I don't think that's the only trap in here," Mari said.

"I agree! That's why it's time for mine sweeping!" Eli grasped her rifle and pointed it toward the sky. "You'd better cover those ears if you don't want hearing some explosion! Bullet Shower!"

Just then, bullets rained everywhere in the area. Then, a lot of loud explosions where heard.

"Man, my ears hurt!" Brendan complained as they walked down the icy path.

"Quit complaining!" Eli shouted at him.

"Gee…" Brendan said.

"Now, where is it?" Mari said to herself.

"Is it really this hard to find that object?" Eli looked around, trying to spot a shiny object but in no luck.

"It won't be easy retrieving it either. According to my research, it has some kind of defense mechanism," Mari said.

"Great…" Eli said as they continued searching for the object.

"What kind of defense mechanism anyway?" Brendan asked.

"I don't know but its tough, that's what my research said," Mari said while she continued moving forward.

"No tough defense mechanism can stop me!" Eli shouted.

Just then, Eli tripped. Her face was planted pretty nicely on the snow and she groaned. After removing her face from the snow, she wiped her face.

"Wait, Eli," Mari said. "I think that's it!"

Mari pointed at something near Eli's foot and Eli inspected it. As she cleared the snow, she saw a shiny, blue crystal.

"It is!" Eli said.

"Positive. That's the one we're looking for," Mari said.

"Then what are you waiting for, Eli?" Brendan said. "Get it already."

"A smack in your face was the thing I was thinking to do first," Eli said. "Brendan, I know what to do!"

Then, Eli held and picked up the crystal. Just then, she heard some footsteps. When she saw some shoes in front of her, she looked up and she was shocked at the sight. Standing in front of her, a familiar guy with brown hair and brown eyes looked at her. Eli stood up and stared at the familiar face.

"C-Cross?!" Eli said in disbelief.

Just then, Cross turned around and walked away from her.

"H—hey! W—wait!" Eli shouted.

"I'm disappointed in you, Eli," Cross said and he tilted his head to see Eli.

"Huh?" Eli said.

"For three years, I thought you have grown stronger. I have high expectations in you, Eli," Cross said.

"Cross?" Eli said.

"In fact, you're much weaker than before," Cross coldly said.

"That's not true!" Eli gritted her teeth. "Besides, we haven't saw each other in three years and this is how you greet me?!"

"I don't care if we haven't met for three or thirty years!" Cross said. "The fact that you're nothing more than a mere poor girl won't change! And for you to be called the head of Intelligence division is a big shame to the clan and you will be a laughing stock for others."

"WHAT?" Eli was filled with anger but her eyes are getting teary.

"That's the sad truth!" Cross said. "You're nothing but garbage!"

The last word put the last nail in the coffin as Eli was in a total shock. She can't believe what she just heard. The words did a lot of toll on Eli and the fact that Cross, the person she trusts most, said it made it more painful. Cold tears dropped into the snowy floor.

"And a garbage like you shall be disposed of," Cross said. "Be gone!"

Suddenly, the ground shook violently. Then, a fissure cracked open beneath Eli.

"No…" The words still affected Eli as she doesn't realize or didn't care on what was happening. The ground moved away from each other and the fissure grows bigger. When the fissure was big enough, Eli fell through it. While falling, some snow fell through the fissure. Then, the fissure started to close. As Eli continued to fall, the light was growing smaller and the closure of the fissure adds to the speed of the shrinking light.

'I'm worthless…' Eli thought.

Just then, some voices tried to call out for Eli.

'I'm weak…' Eli thought.

"Eli!" voices rang out but it seemed to have gone through Eli.

'Garbage…' Eli thought.

"ELI! WAKE UP!"

…

Eli opened her eyes and saw Mari, Zero and Brendan.

"Glad you're awake!" Brendan said.

"Huh? What happened?" Eli asked as she sat down.

"When you touched the crystal, you suddenly fell into the ground," Mari explained.

Just then Eli remembered what happened.

"Cross!" Eli shouted suddenly.

"What are you talking about?" Brendan said. "He wasn't with us for three years, you know,"

"But I just saw him!" Eli shouted.

Then, Brendan sighed.

"I think it's just a dream of yours. I don't even know why you fell asleep all of a sudden," Brendan said.

"Excuse me?" Eli said with a hint of anger.

"I'd better get the crystal," Brendan said and approached the crystal.

'Then what happened was a dream?' Eli thought. 'Wait! What if...'

"Brendan, don't..." Eli tried to say but she was too late. Brendan fell into the snowy floor as soon as he touched the crystal.

'I thought so!' Eli said. 'So that's its defense mechanism!'

"Not Brendan too," Zero said.

When Brendan woke up, he was a bit depressed. Then, Eli discussed about what she and Brendan went through and related it to as the crystal's defense mechanism.

"You might be correct there," Mari said. "It explains why you two suddenly went to sleep as soon as you touched the crystal and it seems that it can produce nightmares too,"

"Correct," Eli said.

"Then, what should we do?" Brendan asked.

"Gran and I can't do anything about that," Zero said.

"This will be a tough one," Eli said.

The four of them thought of different ways but all of it failed. They've almost lost hope until Eli thought of something.

"If the defense mechanism uses the fear of a person and turn it to a nightmare, what if someone with no fear will hold it or someone will overcome that fear instead?" Eli suggested.

"Good idea!" Brendan said.

"I agree," Zero said.

"So, we need to overcome our fears," Mari said. "Who can do it?"

"I'll do it," Eli said.

"But Eli, can you?" Mari said.

"Don't worry! I'll try and try until I'll succeed," Eli said.

"Okay," Mari said.

Eli approached the crystal and touched it. As soon as she did, Cross appeared out of nowhere.

"Cross…" Eli said.

"You're worthless, you know," Cross said.

"Worthless? That doesn't even exist in my dictionary!" Eli said.

"Then what do you think of yourself, Eli?" Cross asked.

"Me? I'm a person. I do make mistakes but there is always room for improvement," Eli said.

"Improvement? That's not even possible with your tiny skills," Cross said.

"Nothing is impossible Cross and you know that!" Eli said.

"What I only know is that you're not worthy of being the head of Intelligence," Cross said.

"Then, why did I become one?" Eli asked.

Just then, Cross smirked.

"That's the Eli that I know!"Cross said. "Always annoying."

"WHAT?" Eli said angrily.

Just then, Cross suddenly disappeared. Eli was about to rant more but then she realized that she was holding the crystal.

"I did it!" Eli shouted as she raised the Energy Crystal into the sky.

"Nice one, Eli!" Brendan said.

"Mission complete," Zero said.

"Let's go back," Mari said.

"And it'll be Brendan's punishment next! It'll be more painful!" Eli shouted.

"Not so fast!" Brendan said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of Chapter 8!<strong>

**Percyval: Next is Chapter 9.**

**Eli: Review for this chapter RIGHT NOW!**

**Me: Whoa, Eli! Calm down a bit.**

**Note:**

**1. The Altar of Balance was booby trapped by someone. Who was it?**

**2. Giveaway clue: Eli was thought how to handle those 'special mines' and someone booby trapped the place by these 'special mines'. XD**

**3. Now you know something more about Eli.**

**4. Energy Crystal, check. One more!**


	9. The Two Races

**Me: Last one!**

**Eli: This is the third and final chapter of the author's update as of now.**

**Me: You don't say.**

**Percyval: Just do the disclaimer.**

**Eli: Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase and the ideas of KoG. He only owns this story, the OCs and the ideas on some parts of the stories. The other OCs belong to their respective authors.**

**Me: Let the chapter begin.**

* * *

><p>Ch. 9: The Two Races<p>

Percyval, Ace, Kaistern and Dio entered the gate to the dwarves' capital city. Being members of the Chase, they have immunity from being attacked. The Archimedia region was known for its legendary non-stop war and the legend still holds.

"The land of the dwarves," Percyval commented.

"It's been a while," Kaistern said.

"You've been here?" Ace asked.

Kaistern just stood silent while holding Calamity in his hands.

"Say, what's that sword of yours?" Percyval asked.

"It's Calamity," Kaistern said straightly. "I wished that I could've used him yesterday,"

"Heh heh heh. Anyway, let's start the search," Percyval said.

"Our priority is to search for this thing called Power Core," Kaistern said. "Mari said that their machines have this so we should ask their mechanics for the item and buy it from them."

"Sure do," Ace said.

Just then, a loud alarm loudly rang throughout the city.

"Uh oh. I don't like the sound of that," Ace said.

"Neither do I," Kaistern said.

"I hope this is just a false alarm," Percyval said. "It's a high possibility that something happened that puts this city into grave danger,"

"Men, to arms! Prepare for war!" a loud voice commanded.

"W-war?" Percyval shouted.

"Let's not waste time. Let's get out of here. We're not involved in this war," Kaistern said.

"Too late! They've closed the perimeters," Dio said.

Just then, a lot of cloaked elves appeared out of nowhere.

"Black Elves?" Kaistern said.

"I think that they think that we're dwarves' allies," Percyval said.

"We have no choice but to defend ourselves," Ace said.

At first, Percyval took it frivolously but he arranged his gauntlet before he unsheathed his scimitar.

"If it's a fight they want, it's a fight they'll get!" Percyval shouted.

Percyval slashed a Dark Elf Assassin's torso and he followed by a low swing, which hit the same opponent's leg. Then, he kicked the elf towards its other comrades, which fell towards the ground.

"Strike!" Percyval said.

"We're not playing here, low life!" Dio said as he threw his scythe and yelled "Death Star!"

"It's his style of fighting. Let him be," Ace said as he slashed a Dark Elf Thief with his blade.

Kaistern dodged an enemy's slash while he countered by slashing its hip. Then, a Dark Elf Thief approached him and Kaistern placed his hand at the enemy's torso. "Ruthless Flare!" the enemy in front of him was burned into a crisp along with the others who were caught in his flames. Another Dark Elf Thief approached behind Kaistern but he intercepted the attack with his Calamity and casted a fireball on his hand, hitting the elf's face.

"Rake Hand!" Dio unleashed the power of his demonic hands as he lifted a lot of opponents into the air. Percyval used these enemies as a jumping platform as he climbed upwards while sending the enemies back into the ground. When Percyval was at the peak, he dived down and landed on an enemy, which he stabbed with his scimitar.

"Luna's Blessing!" Ace casted and he charged towards the enemies without fear. He gave a barrage of slashes and stabs then he kicked an enemy in front of him. He dodged an incoming attack from an enemy which was stabbed later by Ace.

"You guys bore me. It's time to finish this. Time Stop!" Time stopped for Ace's enemies as he gave a barrage of slashes.

Percyval jumped into the middle of the enemy crowd and he quickly brought out his dagger and scimitar.

"Let's have some dance! Slice to Dust!" Percyval slashed his enemies with his weapons back, center and front with his flawless movements. Then, he threw his dagger like a boomerang behind him and finished with a three power slash combo in front of him. After that, he caught is dagger in his hands.

"Black Space!" Some enemies are caught in Dio's attack and they're mercilessly beaten into a pulp. After that, Dio brought out his large spear and charged through the enemies with it. He shouted "Onrush!"

Then, the enemies retreated towards the gate.

"They're retreating!" Percyval said.

"I won't think that as their defeat," Kaistern said.

"But why?" Percyval asked. "They're already moving away from this place. We can rest easy now,"

"Don't assume that, mortal," Dio said.

"He's right Percyval. They might have a plan B or something," Ace said.

"Plan B?" Percyval asked.

Just then, the gate opened and it revealed a large machine with a large missile on it.

"I thought so," Kaistern said as he prepared for another attack.

"We must stop that machine!" Ace said.

'Whoa! I think I have more things to learn," Percyval said.

"Let's go," Kaistern said.

Just then, more enemies appeared and blocked the path towards the machine.

"Percyval, I need you to get through the enemies' defense and disable that machine," Kaistern said.

"Got it!" Percyval jumped from one enemy to another. When he finished jumping off the third enemy, two Dark Elf Assassins blocked him in mid-air. Percyval knocked out the two with his gauntlet and proceeded towards the machine.

Meanwhile, Kaistern, Dio and Ace were fighting the enemy front line. Kaistern casted fireballs towards the machine but they're always blocked by enemies. Dio crushed many enemies with his demonic powers while Ace defeated an enemy one after the other. Kaistern used his fire prowess to annihilate a lot of enemies and Percyval was striving to move towards the machine. When he reached the machine, he knocked out the elf that was controlling it and slashed the controls of the machine to make it uncontrollable. Then, he slashed some wires to cut off the power supply.

"That did it!" Percyval said and he joined the battle. He noticed that the elves are also fighting someone but what Percyval can only see is a long white hair. He ignored it and fought the elves with his might.

"Sword Wave!" Percyval unleashed a wave of energy which caught many enemies.

"Blazing Devastation!" Kaistern created a blast of flames which burned a lot of enemies and has scarred a wide area of the ground.

"Evil Eddy!" Dio unleashed a spherical energy which hit a lot of enemies before it exploded.

As the enemies get thinned, Ace saw a girl with a long white hair. The girl wore a silver knight's armor suit and metal gloves and she has a joust and a round shield with her. Both her weapon and shield had some peculiar design which was hard to describe.

'Who's she?' Ace thought.

Then, an enemy charged towards the girl but she dodged and slammed the enemy with her shield. The enemy flew towards Ace and he dodged the incoming enemy. Ace held his weapon to prepare for an attack as he isn't sure if the girl was an enemy or a foe. The girl stepped forward, her hair dancing a little in the air, and she just stood there. Then, she suddenly said, "come."

Ace didn't waste a second and he appeared in front of the girl. He made a quick slash and the sound of metals clashing rung as it collided with the girl's shield. Ace swung his other blade which has collided with the girl's joust. Then, the girl pushed Ace away.

"Tough girl, huh," Ace said. "Let's see if you can dodge this!"

Ace charged while holding his blade diagonally behind him on both sides. The girl just stood her ground while Ace charged forward. Before they met, Ace shouted, "Time Stop" at the last second. Ace attacked at an opening with the blade on his right hand. Then, metals clashed together and produced a sharp sound. Just then, Ace noticed that his attack was blocked by the girl's shield.

"But how?" Ace said.

"Spark!" the girl shouted.

The girl stabbed her joust at Ace's side and weak electricity flowed into Ace's body. Then, she pushed Ace away with her shield.

"Ace!" Percyval ran towards the Blader.

Ace stood up but he was still thinking how the girl did her previous actions.

'Impossible! No one was able to move in my spell before!' Ace thought.

"Ace! You okay?" Percyval asked.

"Yeah," he said.

Percyval stared at the girl for a while. Then, the girl turned around and walked away from the two.

'Who's she?' Percyval thought

"Wait!" Ace tried to chase the girl but Percyval held him down.

"We don't have time for that! The enemies are still attacking. Kaistern and Dio will need our help," Percyval said.

Ace gritted his teeth but he can't argue and he helped Kaistern and Dio who both defeated a heap of enemies. With his blade, Kaistern was able to defeat a lot of monsters with scorching-hot moves and Dio's demonic powers easily took out the lives of some elves mercilessly.

"Run if you want to live," Dio moved forward with grace but with a fearless image.

Kaistern stopped his attacks for a while and watched his enemies panic. Some of them were still looking for a fight and he was about to finish them. Instead, Percyval did the job with one swoop and a series of flashy combos. Ace also helped in cleaning the leftovers. While some retreated in fear, the remaining persistent ones got killed.

…

As the commotion died down, some dwarf soldiers approached the team and gave their thanks.

"No problem," Kaistern said. "Now, we must obtain the Power Core."

"Already taken care of," Percyval approached Kaistern while spinning a small red sphere on his pointer finger.

"Where did you get that?" Ace asked.

"Well, the machine that the dark elves used had one," Percyval said as he continued spinning the sphere.

"At least we're done here," Kaistern said.

"Yeah," Ace said. "I didn't really expect to be fighting an army today,"

"I'm pretty tired," Percyval said as he held the sphere on his left hand.

"Let's get back to the mansion," Kaistern said.

"Good idea!" Ace said.

"Let's go then," Percyval said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter nine!<strong>

**Eli: Wew, that's the last one.**

**Percyval: Yeah.**

**Eli: Power Core, check! YEY!**

**Me: Anyway—**

**Eli: REVIEW IN THIS CHAPTER, TOO!**

**Me: No notes in this chapter.**


	10. Rampage

**Me: Hi guys!**

**Eli: Start the chapter already!**

**Me: Someone's getting excited.**

**Percyval: Better calm her down.**

**Me: Eli, do the disclaimer please.**

**Eli: Silent Treecko doesn't own either Grand Chase or its characters. He only owns the story and his OCs. Other OCs belongs to the other authors. The author is also excited on playing Rin the Mystic and Pokémon Black 2 and White 2.**

**Me: Do you have to mention that? Anyway, here's the chapter!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 10: Rampage<p>

_Percyval's POV_

As I walked through the corridor, I saw Eli who was humming a cheerful tone.

"Don't get too excited cousin," I said to her.

"Of course!" Eli said and she walked past me.

I sighed and continued walking along the corridor.

'I just hope that nothing bad will happen,' I thought. 'It'll be breakfast soon,'

Then, I ended up in the living room where Ronan, Ryan, Jin, Blade, Lire and Aira were hanging out.

"Good morning to you all!" I greeted the group.

"Morning Percyval!" Aira greeted with a smile.

I sat on the couch and joined their conversation.

"So, can I join this conversation?" I asked.

"Of course," Ryan said.

"We're just talking about a certain girl anyway," Ronan said.

"And who might that girl be?" I asked.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

'Buster? No, too simple. Hmm…' I thought.

I was walking at the corridors, trying to think for a better name for my new weapon. Then, I stopped at an intersection.

'Blaster? No. Eruption? No, too odd,' I thought.

Just then, I heard some voices approaching my position.

"It's too bad you know," A girl's voice said.

"Yeah, I know!" Another girl said.

"I've heard that the item that Mari's making is for a certain girl," A voice said.

'What are they talking about?' I thought.

Just then, I saw Sapphire and Scarlet who walked by. They didn't seem to notice me. Still, I decided to eavesdrop more since I want to know what they are talking about.

"That item is for her benefit, you know!" Scarlet said.

"Yeah! Mari said that it's powerful too," Sapphire said.

"Oh well, I wish we can help," Scarlet said.

"And it's going to be hard for Mari to restart again. She needs to recollect all the items again," Sapphire said.

"Heh, it's that black boy's fault," Scarlet said.

"Calm down, sis," Sapphire said. "Also, we must be careful you know. If SHE heard us, she'll get angry,"

"Right," Scarlet said.

Then, I stopped eavesdropping as the two turned around the corner. I stood still while I analyzed what they've just said.

"Do they mean that…" I whispered silently and I bit my lower lip.

* * *

><p><em>Sapphire's POV<em>

"I hope we can do something," I said.

"Yeah. That potion will be helpful for Elesis and her appetite," Scarlet said.

"It'll help us too!" I exclaimed. "We won't have to do food restocking as a daily chore."

Just then, I saw Elesis.

"Sis, she's here! Let's drop the topic," I whispered.

Then, we walked past Elesis and I sighed.

"That was close!" I said.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"So, this potion that Mari made failed or what?" I asked.

"No. Master Sieghart mistook it as the liquid fertilizer for Ryan's plants," Lire said.

"My plants!" Ryan said. "I don't know what will happen to them."

"Calm down Ryan! I'm sure that it has no negative effect on your plants," Aira tried to cheer Ryan.

"What if it had?" Ryan shouted.

"Ryan, please, calm down…" Lire said.

Just then, I remembered something.

"Hmm… I'm worried about something else," I said.

"What is it, Percyval?" Blade asked.

"Well, I also remembered that Mari is also working on Eli's weapon, right?" I asked.

"Yes," Lire said.

"Then, there is a possibility that she might mistook that the failed project was her weapon. That could be a problem," I said.

"Well, I don't see any problem with that, considering that the person was Eli," Ronan said.

"Well, normally, yes, that isn't a problem. But…" I said.

"But what?" Jin asked.

"Eli was too excited. Well, I know that Eli's excited because she'll get her new weapon today and with that, she has a high expectation that she'll get it today," I said.

"Well, I'll go tell her about the potion," Blade said.

"Don't! One slip of the tongue and it'll be trouble," I said.

"May I ask why we should be cautious?" Aira asked.

"I'll say that something VERY BAD will happen if she misunderstood it," I said with a scared tone.

"How bad is it?" Jin asked.

"I… don't what to say it. Let's just tell it to the others to be careful,"

"Uhm… Except Elesis, right?" Lire said.

"As long as she doesn't know about the potion, its fine," I said.

"Hey Ryan!" Ace suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"What is it Ace?" Ryan asked.

"Something happened to your plants!" Ace said.

"What happened?" Ryan asked.

"I can't describe it! Just take a look!" Ace said and ran through the direction where Ryan's flower garden is.

"Let's go," Ronan said.

'I hope this isn't bad news,' I thought.

We went to Ryan's flower garden and when we arrived, we were shocked at what we saw. The flowers have a rainbow color and they seem to be sparkling like diamonds. There is also a rainbow that formed above the garden and along with the sun, it's an exquisite scene.

"I've never seen such flower before," Lire said as she lowered her head to take a whiff of the flower. "It smells nice, too!"

"T—THIS IS A MIRACE!" Ryan shouted.

"That's not the only thing that changed! Take a look at Ryan's apple tree!" Ace shouted and he went to the apple tree. Then, we followed him.

When we arrived, we saw a tree. Its trunk is normal but the leaves have changed from green to violet and the apples are colored blue. The fruit is also sparkling like a diamond.

"Wow! Just wow!" Blade said.

"The fruit looks yummy but it's too beautiful to eat!" Aira said.

"Are the fruits even safe to eat?" Ronan asked.

"We'll see," I said as I picked an apple and took a bite. I immediately felt the fruit's juiciness and its sweetness was another factor.

"It's d-delicious!" I said as I finished the apple. Afterwards, my stomach felt full.

"I think I'll pass breakfast today. I'm full already!" I said.

"That's something," Jin said.

"I don't remember putting anything at my tree," Ryan said.

"Wait! Remember, we put some of those potions that Master Sieghart thought to be fertilizers," Lire said.

"Then…" Ryan said.

"Mari's potions are a success!" Ronan said.

"That's a good thing," I said.

"Let's inform Mari!" Ace said.

Just then, I saw a black smoke oozed from the mansion.

"Smoke?" I said.

I caught the attention of the others besides me.

"W—what happened?" Aira said.

"Let's investigate," Ronan said.

We rushed back to the mansion and we saw the source of the smoke. There was a fire in the kitchen. Aira was quick to extinguish the flames. We saw Amy, Arme and Dante and they are inside Arme's spell, which protected them from damage.

"What happened?" Lire asked.

"I don't know," Amy said.

"I remember that I heard a gunshot then a fire started and it spread quickly," Arme said.

"Gunshot?" I said and something hit me. "Oh no!"

"What is it, Percyval?" Dante asked.

"This is no good! We must find Eli quickly!" I said and unsheathed my scimitar.

"What's wrong?" Ryan asked.

"This place might turn into rubble if we don't hurry!" I said.

"What?" Ronan said in quite a shock.

I ran in a hurry and tried to find my cousin. I dodged an incoming bullet and I saw Eli with an unusual look. Her eyes seem to be blank. Then, I realized what happened.

"No…" I said.

I noticed that the others arrived.

"Hey Eli!" Ace said, waving at her.

"No! Don't!" I shouted and I saw Eli looked at Ace. She pointed her pistols at our general direction.

"Duck!" I shouted and ducked behind the couch. Eli fired at our place and everyone had ducked in time.

"Eli, it's us!" Amy shouted.

"It's no use!" I shouted.

"What do you mean?" Arme asked.

"Percyval, is it..." Ronan said but I cut him off.

"Yes, this is what I feared about Eli!" Percyval said. "She's like a war machine right now and she can't recognize all of us!"

"Then that means..." Ryan said.

"Yes. The others are also in danger," I said.

"What's this entire ruckus?" someone said.

* * *

><p><em>Brendan's POV<em>

"And what are you all doing behind the sofa?" I asked the group who where behind the couch.

"Brendan! Get out of there!" Jin shouted.

"Why?" I asked.

Just then, I saw Eli, who pointed her pistols at me.

"Yikes! Transato!" I teleported to where the others are.

"Brendan!" Amy said.

"What's going on?" I asked with a little hint of anger.

"No time to explain! As you can see, Eli's on a rampage!" Percyval said.

Just then, the couch in front of us suddenly flew into the air and a pair of pistols was pointed at us.

"Saver!" Arme casted.

"Run!" Blade shouted.

"Transato!" I went behind Eli and grabbed her arms. Just then, a sniper gun was pointed at my forehead in point blank range.

"What the..." I said.

A dagger flew towards the sniper gun and disoriented it. A gunshot went past my left ear and I quickly hid behind the television. Percyval landed by my side and he caught his flying dagger.

"Don't be reckless," he said.

Then, Eli appeared above us and I pushed Percyval. I quickly ran towards the other direction and the ground we were before has a lot of holes.

"We must alarm everyone!" Ronan shouted. "Paralyze!"

"Spell Break!" Eli shouted.

* * *

><p><em>Mari's POV<em>

I was busy working on Lorem Ipsum when I heard something.

"What was that?" I asked Sieghart who was with me.

"Don't know. Let's just work on that, okay?" Sieghart said.

"Okay," I said as I focused on the work at hand.

* * *

><p><em>Blade's POV<em>

I met Sapphire and Scarlet at the corridor while I was running.

"Scarlet! Sapphire! We need your help!" I said.

"What happened?" Sapphire asked.

"I have no time to explain! Come with me!" I grabbed their hands and ran towards the end of the corridor which leads to the living room.

"I'll leave you here while I warn the others," I said and left in a hurry.

* * *

><p><em>Scarlet's POV<em>

"I feel dizzy," Sapphire said.

I peeked at the living room and I saw the others who are being attacked by Eli.

"What's going on here?" I said.

Eli looked at me and pointed her rifle at me. Then, a wall of ice appeared in front of me and Sapphire dragged me down.

"You okay, sis?" Sapphire asked.

"I'm fine," I said.

Then, Aira went besides us and hid along with us.

"What's happening?" I asked.

"Eli's gone bananas!" Aira said.

"You don't say," I said sarcastically. "What I mean is how did things escalate?"

"You see…" Aira said.

Aira explained to me what she heard from Percyval and gave us a conclusion.

"So, a possibility is that she misunderstood the project for Elesis as hers," I said.

"We were just talking about it a while ago," Sapphire said. "Maybe she heard us?"

"Please help! I'm begging you!" Aira said.

"Classic Force!" Zero's voice echoed throughout the room.

"Alright! Suzaku!" I summoned my phoenix and commanded it to circle Eli.

As my phoenix went to Eli, we took a peak and I saw Elesis trying to get through Eli while Lire supported her. As soon as Suzaku approached Eli, Elesis stepped aside and Suzaku surrounded her. Meanwhile, Eli's cousin appeared behind her and was about to knock Eli down but she dodged and counter-attacked by kicking her cousin aside. Then, Ryan and Ronan approached Eli with an attack but she dodged both. Then, Jin, Ace, Percyval, Brendan, Blade, Elesis, and Arme, along with Ryan and Ronan, surrounded Eli but failed since Eli jumped. Then, she pointed her pistols below her.

"Storm Bullet!" she shouted.

Ryan created a big dome to protect them from Eli's attack. Eli continued spinning and landed on the dome after. Percyval appeared and he was about to hold down Eli but she's too fast.

"I can't cast like this!" Arme said.

* * *

><p><em>Amy's POV<em>

Percyval was chasing after Eli. She started firing bullets at the Sword Fighter who deflected it using his scimitar. Then, he lost grip of his scimitar and it flew some feet behind him. He used his claws to deflect more bullets as he used his acrobatic skills to move towards his scimitar and pick it up swiftly.

"Freezing Arrow!" Lire's attempt to hit her missed and Eli moved towards her. Elesis blocked her and Blade tried to grab hold of her but failed. Then, Eli jumped while her pistols where rapidly spinning on her palms.

"GET BEHIND ANY WALL! QUICK!" Percyval shouted and I hid behind the kitchen's entrance.

"Giga Crusher!" Eli shouted.

I can hear the bullets collide with the wall as I waited for it to stop. As it stopped, all of us appeared and we're ready to fight.

"WHAT HAPPENED HERE?" an angry voice said.

* * *

><p><em>Sieghart's POV<em>

"What mess is this?" I shouted.

All of them were surrounding Eli. As I looked Eli, she charged at me and attacked with a kick, which I blocked with my hand and threw her off. As she landed, Blade was quick on her feet and pinned Eli into a wall.

"Now Arme!" Blade shouted.

"Sleep!" Arme casted.

Then, Eli collapsed into the floor. Everybody got a sigh of relief but I was still confused so I asked the others. Some of them kindly explained the situation to me. Percyval explained more of what really happened.

"So that's what happened," I said as they explained what happened in the living room, which was now just some remains of it.

"Yeah. I can never forget when she ran amok during a festival," Percyval said. "It's a good thing she was stopped back then. Thanks to him."

"Him?" Amy asked. "Who is he?"

"Well, we we're still kids back then and it's been a long time since I've seen him," Percyval said. "Eli also worked with him, you know. I've been thankful that Master Cross was there at that time,"

"You mean Cross?" Jin asked and Percyval gave a nod. Then, Eli woke up and held her head.

"Ugh…" Eli said. "W-what happened?"

"Just look around you," I said.

Eli did take a look around and I saw her shiver.

"Cousin, I did it again, didn't I?" she asked.

"Heh heh heh. You sure did! At least you didn't destroy thirty houses this time," Percyval joked.

"T-thirty?" Lire said.

"Yes," Percyval said. "By the way, assuming that you heard the twins, you have misunderstood what they're talking."

"Huh? What do you mean?" she asked.

"We were talking about Elesis' potion," Sapphire explained.

"I don't need that!" Elesis argued.

"Anyway, here's a present," I said as I pointed the long crate besides me.

"Is that what I think it is?!" Eli said with excitement.

"No," Brendan said, earning a do-you-want-to-die glare from the others.

"Open it," I said.

Eli opened the crate and her eyes were gleaming.

"I can't believe it!" Eli said as she continuously stared at the crate.

"That reminds me of the eclipse three months ago," Ace said.

"Yeah," Ronan said.

"I'm still wondering about it either," Arme said.

"The total eclipse? I saw it too," Percyval said.

"Really?" Eli said.

"Yeah. It's a strange sighting," Percyval said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of this chapter.<strong>

**Eli: Hyah! Here we go!**

**Me: Not yet Eli.**

**Eli: Aww…**

**Me: If only I could draw, I would've made a manga out of these stories of mine. ~.~**

**Percyval: The author will be obliged if you review in this chapter.**

**Notes:**

**1. The highlight of this chapter is about Eli's destructive side.**

**2. Cross is the one who stopped Eli's first rampage, in which she destroyed 30 houses (scary).**

**3. Can you guess the next chapter? (Hint: "Mystic" XD)**


	11. SS: Birth During the Eclipse

**Me: Hello guys.**

**Eli: A brief introduction and a short story, what do you say?**

**Me: Fine with me as long as I get cozy here.**

**Eli: Whatever.**

**Pervcyval: Do as you please.**

**Me: Disclaimer?**

**Eli: Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase because he only owns the stories he make and his OCs.**

**Me: Let's roll!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 11 (Side Story): Birth During the Eclipse<p>

_? POV_

I stumbled myself into a scroll and got curious about it. I inspected it and saw the black letters written on it said "The Goddess and the Malevolent Horde".

"Well doesn't hurt to read it," I said.

As my fingers make their way into the scroll, I pulled one side to open it and I started reading the fine letters of the ancient scroll.

"Darkness overwhelms the world during a total eclipse. Why is this? This is the story of a goddess who sacrificed herself to save the world," it said.

I pulled the scroll and new words appeared to me.

"Evil has always existed in this world. As the Malevolent Horde awakened, its black flame began to consume everything…"

"The strength of the malevolent horde was so great, even the gods were rendered helpless. As all of creation faced annihilation, only the sounds of suffering can be heard…"

"Agnesia, the goddess of life and purity, was travelling eastward when faced by the Malevolent Horde."

"With full understanding that evil can never be truly destroyed, she sealed the Malevolent Horde within her body."

"Agnesia's sacrifice successfully saved the world at the cost of her immortality."

"She chose to continuously die and be reborn in an effort to keep the Malevolent Horde sealed away."

"As Agnesia's body weakens, the Malevolent Horde regains its strength, and its shadow threatens the world once again."

"That event, the total eclipse, is where the goddess is reborn into a new body and again, sealing the Malevolent Horde until her next rebirth."

I folded the scroll and held it in my left hand.

"This is a great catch. Better keep it," I said.

My fingers ran through the chain besides my pants and scampered into my box. Then, a bright light shined within the room.

* * *

><p><em>Three months before the Harvest Festival<em>

_Eli's POV_

I woke up with a loud yawn and picked up my pistols on the nearby table before I went out of my bed.

"Another day of training," I said to myself.

I went out of my room and I noticed Elesis' room. I quickly fired a shot at the rope on the contraption which was set on Elesis' room and after a split second, tomatoes hit the door hard, spreading their red juiciness on it.

"Brendan…" I muttered with a sigh.

I went into the nearby balcony and jumped. As I landed, my mind was set on training in Training Area Five. As I entered the training grounds, a lot of training dummies appeared out of nowhere.

"Let's get this show on the road!" I shouted.

* * *

><p><em>Kaistern's POV<em>

'Another day…' I thought.

As I walked down the hall, everyone who I bumped into greeted me with a good morning but I never replied them. There is only one thing on my mind.

'Freya…'

* * *

><p><em>Selena's POV<em>

Zeta and I took a long deep sigh as we watched Brendan and Elesis go at it.

"Eat this!" Brendan said.

"You're going to be sliced, radish head!" Elesis shouted.

"When will they ever stop?" Zeta said.

"I don't know," I said.

Just then, Elyce arrived at the scene and sat besides me.

"What's up, lovebirds?" she said but I ignored her.

Just then, Zeta placed his arm over my shoulder and said, "Jealous?"

"I am not!" Elyce shouted.

I'm feeling a little hot at the cheeks when Zeta placed his arm but I'm not nervous. In fact, he does this a lot of times. Then, I noticed that Aira and Zero went down the stairs.

"Two more lovebirds!" Elyce shouted.

"Don't worry Elyce, you'll get one soon!" Zeta joked. "And it'll be a cat and dog relationship."

"SHUT UP!" Elyce said as she threw a pillow at Zeta.

I giggled a bit at Elyce's action, especially when her cheeks flushed red.

"What is this? Love-a-palooza?" Ace said when he arrived.

"No, it's Elyce the looza," Zeta said, trying to make it rhyme with the previous sentence.

"Why you…" Elyce said as she bared her fangs.

"Aww… What a cute, little cat," Zeta said.

"No way! Aira is waaaaaaaaaaay cuter!" Elyce said as she hugged Aira.

"Uuuuuuuu~. Stop it Elyce!" Aira said as her cheeks became tomato red.

"Aww! You're blushing makes you cuter!" Elyce said.

"Stop it~!" Aira said.

"What a way to change the conversation," Zeta said.

"Yeah," I agreed.

* * *

><p><em>Mari's POV<em>

'I can't start without the body, and the body needs to be made out of rare metal,' I thought as I examined the blueprints once more.

"Having trouble with that?" Sieghart said as he placed some flask on my desk.

"Quite…" I said.

"What kind of metal is it?" Sieghart asked.

"It's unidentified on this blueprint but one indication is that it shines brightly when the place suddenly gets dark during the day," I said.

"And what event is that?" Sieghart asked.

I just stood in deep silence, trying to think of any event similar to that.

"Maybe we should get into a dark room during the day," Sieghart said. "Or block the sun during the day."

"Block the sun? Was that even possible back then?" I asked.

"I dunno," Sieghart said.

* * *

><p><em>Ryan's POV<em>

I wiped my sweat as I finished my daily routine of watering the plants. I looked at the sun that shone brightly as ever.

"It's a great day, isn't it?" I said.

Just then, I noticed something odd. There was a part of the sun that blacked out.

"What da…" I said.

Then, it started spreading out on the sun.

"Wha… was da sun being eaten? Better call the others," I said as I rushed inside.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

As Elesis tried to slash Brendan, Ryan entered the living room and stopped for a while.

"What's wrong, Ryan?" Ace asked.

"Guys! Have a look outside! Da sun… it's… it's…" Ryan said.

"Come on… Spit it out…" Zeta said.

"Uhm… Is it just me or it's getting dark," Aira said.

Then, everyone, including Elesis and Brendan, noticed that it was getting dark, even if it's daytime. Without anymore questions, everyone in the living room went outside and they ended up meeting Eli, who was staring above.

"Eli!" Ace said.

"Look above!" Eli said and everyone did look above as they saw that some parts of the sun are black and it's spreading.

"What's happening?" Elyce asked.

"I don't know," Eli said. "It's the first time I've seen this."

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"The Kingdom of Kanavan…" I said. "Maybe I can get some clues here…"

Before I entered the kingdom gates, I noticed that everything seems darker. Then, I looked at the sky and I saw the sun being covered by something black.

"What is that?" I said.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

The others have also arrived at the entrance and they all saw the sun being covered by something until only a ring of it remains.

"What's going on?" Ley demanded an answer.

"Is that…" Blade said.

"It's a natural phenomenon," Mari explained. "That is what they call a total eclipse where the moon blocks the sun."

"Even during daytime?" Ronan asked.

Just then, Mari realized something.

"The moon blocks the sun and everything gets darker during the day…" Mari said. "It's the total eclipse."

"Mari?" Sieghart asked.

"Everyone, find a metal that was brilliantly shining and fast," Mari said.

"You mean like that?" Amy pointed into a large block that was shining brilliantly besides Ryan's apple tree.

"That's it!" Sieghart said.

"This'll be the birth of a new project," Mari said.

"Hmm…" Arme said.

"What is it, Arme?" Lass asked.

"I think I heard a legend about an eclipse before," Arme said.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

"The eclipse," I said as my black cloak was blown by the gentle wind.

As I looked down, I can see the others gazing upon the metal I just brought now.

"Good luck making that," I said. "Besides, speaking of birth, it's said that during the eclipse, it's the rebirth of the goddess of life and purity, Agnesia."

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

"Wait a minute!" Ryan said. "I never saw that thing before."

"Maybe you overlook it?" I said.

"No way will you overlook something that big," Nate said.

"Well, you're right," I said.

"Well, let's get it inside the mansion," Sapphire said.

"We'll need everyone's help with this," Sieghart said.

"Let me do the job!" Brendan said.

* * *

><p><em>Present Day<em>

_? POV_

I heard some footsteps entering the room and I saw him when I looked around.

"Good to see you, doggy!" I said.

"For the last time, I am not doggy!" he shouted and gritted his teeth like a dog.

"You act like one you know. Maybe by nature?" I joked.

"Shut up!" he said and tried to punch me but I dodged.

"I'll get you by materi…" he said.

"Now, now. Be a good dog now," I said.

He was angry for a while but he had calmed down a bit.

"Fine- master," he said.

"You know, you kinda remind me of my last two students," I said.

"And those are?" he asked.

"Don't remember? It's Cross and Eli," I said.

"Yeah, yeah. Like I cared," he said.

"Let's just get done with this doggy, eh?" I said.

"SHUT UP!" he shouted.

"What? Oh, you want a head scratch?" I said.

"Now you'll get it!" he said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of this chapter.<strong>

**Eli: What a messy chapter…**

**Me: It's not!**

**Eli: It is!**

**Me: It's not!**

**Eli: It is!**

**Percyval: *sigh* Review guys.**

**1. The legend was from the game and I've just improvised the last part.**

**2. This story just tells how Eli's weapon got its start and… you know.**

**3. Also, it introduces more mysterious characters with given hints on the story itself. *smirk***


	12. Gun Empress

**Me: Hello people! Today's chapter will…**

**Eli: I CANNOT WAIT!**

**Percyval: Someone restrain her.**

**Me: Just do the disclaimer.**

**Eli: SilentTreeckodoesn'townGrandChasenorit'splayablecharactersheonlyown shisownOCsandthestory.**

**Percyval: That was excessively fast. I do not think anyone will understand that.**

**Me: *sigh*Let us just start.**

* * *

><p>Ch. 12: Gun Empress<p>

_Percyval's POV_

I was reading a comic book that had me interested since yesterday. As I flipped through a page, I heard a loud crash but I did not paid any attention because I focused myself on what I am reading.

'It's been four days since the last mission,' I thought as I flipped another page.

"Hey, cous'!" someone shouted.

I looked in front of me and I saw Eli. I was a bit surprised when I saw her with a plain but beautiful cerulean-colored dress with some ruffles at the side and back of the dress' neck.

"Are you going to a party or somewhere?" I said as my gaze went back to the comic book.

"No, silly!" she said. "This will be the one I'll wear when I'll go to missions."

"I'd like to laugh about it but that idea is a no-no," I said and I flipped another page. "Where is your weapon anyway?"

"I have my pistols here and this!" Eli said. "Eclipse!"

I looked at her and I saw her dress fly and turned into a massive gun. She held her weapon with two hands and placed it on her shoulder.

"So that's the new name for your weapon?" I said as I looked back to the comic book.

"Lorem Ipsum is too long," she said.

"Good point," I said as I flipped another page.

"Will you look at me for once instead on that comic book?" she shouted.

"Come on! I'm getting on the good part," I said.

"Maybe you want a taste of my weapon," she said.

"Alright already," I said.

I looked at her again and I am quite impressed on the change. She has a cerulean top with a peculiar design painted with white and above it are two sashes, filled with ammunitions, which are crossing each other. In addition, she had a cerulean mini-skirt with a lace of royal blue ribbon on her waist. Both her legs and arms were partially covered by high-quality royal blue cloth that ran down spirally. She had cerulean fingerless gloves with white on the bottom and royal blue on where the fingers go. In addition, her shoe is also a cerulean color with royal blue soles.

"Hey, not bad," I commented.

"Thanks," she said.

"Anyway, why dress so lightly?" I asked.

"I'd have to so that I can compensate on this weapon's heaviness," she said.

"How heavy is it anyway?" I asked.

"Why don't you try carrying it," she said.

"Uhm… sure," I said as she handed me her weapon while it still touches the ground.

"I'll let go of it once you're ready," she said.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," I said.

Just then, I was pulled towards the ground by Eli's weapon. My hands were definitely crushed under her weapon.

"How much does this thing weigh?" I asked.

"50 kilograms," she said.

"WHAT? 50? I can't even carry half of it!" I shouted.

"Put some training and you might even lift it a little," she teased.

"Then get it off!" I shouted.

She lifted her weapon with ease and I blew my hands due to intense pain.

"Thanks a lot, grizzly!" I said sarcastically. Just then, I remembered something that I should not have done.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" Eli was being filled with rage as she said that.

"Grizzly?" Brendan, who appeared out of nowhere, said.

"Oops…" I said and I gulped due to nervousness.

"PER-CY-VAL!" Eli aimed her weapon at me.

"Yikes! Don't point the knife at me!" I shouted while being pointed by the knife attached to her weapon.

"YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID!" Eli closed in her knife that it actually touched my nose.

"Bye!" I ran quickly out of the mansion.

"COME BACK HERE, YOU ROYAL SLOTH!" Eli shouted as she chased me.

* * *

><p><em>Brendan's POV<em>

"I'm sorry!" Percyval shouted as both he and Eli ran into the forest.

"What's with the grizzly and royal sloth?" I asked myself.

"At least they won't do harm inside the mansion," someone said.

I looked around and saw Torn just at the top of the stairs.

"So, you were watching them?" I asked.

Torn just ignored what I said and left.

"Gee…" I said.

Just then, I saw a comic book on the couch.

"Is that the latest version of that comic book?" I said and sat on the couch.

* * *

><p><em>Elesis' POV<em>

My sword clashed with gramps' weapon, making a sharp metallic sound on the field. Then, I backed away and resumed my stance.

"Not bad, red," Gramps said.

"You haven't seen anything yet!" I said.

"Next time, use your legs more. That's where the power of your sword comes from," he commented.

"Okay," I agreed and I was prepared to charge when suddenly, I heard a loud sound coming from the forest.

"What the…" gramps looked at the direction of the forest.

"Smoke?" I said as I saw smoke coming from the forest.

"That place is near the river," gramps said.

"I'm on it!" I heard a girl's voice said.

Suddenly, it started raining.

"Well, that cares of things… I guess," I said.

"Shall we continue," Gramps asked.

"Right!" I said as I resumed my stance.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"What are you doing? That's dangerous!" I said.

"Eat this!" Eli shouted as she fired another missile.

"Wah!" I ducked just in time and the missile went deeper into the forest.

'It's a good thing it's raining,' I thought.

Just then, Eli aimed at me again and this time, she firing a rain of bullets at me with the machine gun. I hid behind the tree just when I saw that.

"Stop it, Eli!" I shouted.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

"Why does it have to rain?" I said while I still hold my uncooked fish.

I was sitting in the middle of the forest we sneaked into for breakfast. Just then, a missile went past me and hit a tree a few meters behind me.

"Why would someone fire a missile in this forest?" I said. "Better start cooking again,"

Just then, I remembered something.

'I hope he is doing okay,' I thought. 'It's been almost thirty minutes,'

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

"Meh. This is boring!" I said.

I was sitting by the riverside, trying to catch some fish but with no luck.

"I can't believe that master wants me to go looking for food in this forest," I sighed. "I did found a lot of fruits but meat is just as important."

Just then, I heard a splash and a voice… It was too faint that I could only make out "El…"

"Meh. Whatever that is," I said.

Just then, I caught a scent of a wild animal.

'Better catch that wild boar,' I thought as I stood up and ran into the forest.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

"Guys! It's breakfast!" Amy shouted.

Not too long, people filled the dining room.

"Let's eat!" Elesis ate her meal like there was no tomorrow.

The whole gang ate their meal. Then, Arme noticed that some are missing.

"Where's Lire, Eli, Ryan and Percyval?" she asked.

"We're here," someone said.

Percyval and Eli appeared by the kitchen entrance. Both of them are dripping wet but Percyval was covered in bumps and bruises.

"What happened?" Arme asked as she approached the two.

"Well, you know, someone fell into the water… again," Percyval said.

"Again?" Eli asked.

"What do you mean, Percyval?" Arme said as she tended to the Sword Fighter's injuries.

"Well, I did save her when she miraculously fell from the sky and into the small lake," Percyval said.

"That would be Brendan's fault," Elesis blamed Brendan, who laughed nervously.

"You're also to blame, Elesis," Jin said.

"So, it was you who I saw back then?" Eli asked.

"Yeah. Besides, I don't want to see someone drowning, especially my cousin who doesn't know how to swim," Percyval said.

After a while of silence, Eli blurted out.

"WAIT A MINUTE! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT PHRASE FROM?" Eli shouted.

"Heh heh heh. An old pal said it to me the day after you wreak havoc at my place," Percyval said. "Anyway, I'll take my food, please. I'll eat at my room."

"Here," Amy gave him his food.

"Also, get yourself dry cous'. You don't wanna wake all of us during the night," Percyval said before he left.

"That jerk…" Eli said. "Why does he know that phrase?"

"Here's a towel, Eli," Sapphire gave her one.

"Thanks," Eli dried herself with the towel.

"Come on, let's eat," Arme said.

"Yeah…" Eli said and sat on her seat. Just then, Eli realized something as soon as she looked at the table.

"Where is my food anyway?" Eli asked.

Just then, she saw Elesis eating a meal that looks like it was untouched before.

"ELESIS!" Eli brought out her weapon, Eclipse, and aimed it at Elesis.

"Whoa! Stop it!" Sieghart said.

"Eli!" Kaistern shouted sternly.

"Ceasefire! CEASEFIRE!" Ace, who was already beneath the table, shouted.

"What is this? History repeats itself?" Ronan said.

"No, that should be history repeats and makes it worse!" Nate shouted.

"Quick! Strangle Brendan before he'll use Transato!" Sapphire said.

"I'm on it!" Scarlet said with a smirk.

"Hey! I'm not going to use it!" Brendan said.

"I'm finished eating…" Dio said and left.

"Wait, Dio!" Ley said and left.

Luxus just sighed while he ate his food.

_Meanwhile…_

"DA TREES!" Ryan said while he knelt besides one, which had fallen to the ground.

"Come on, Ryan! It's breakfast already!" Lire said.

Then, Lire stood silent for a while before she quickly prepared her bow and arrow, turned around and fired it. The arrow only hit a tree trunk.

"Strange… I thought I sensed someone nearby…" Lire said.

"WHO DID DIS TO DA TREES!" Ryan mourned.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter.<strong>

**Percyval and Eli: No comments…**

**Me: Please review people!**

**Notes:**

**1. Eli's 4****th**** job is Gun Empress and her weapon is Lorem Ipsum a.k.a Eclipse, which weighs a lot. There will be more action in the future chapters ^^.**

**2. Grizzly and lazy sloth… Just take note of those and it might be helpful for knowing those two people more.**

**3. I think everyone knows who make it rain. (Hint: Starts with letter A! (Duh))**

**4. If you read carefully Ch. 10, it is clear who told Percyval the phrase. (This is a hint people!)**

**5. History repeats itself! Woo hoo. (Guess what chapter did that happened!)**


	13. Grief

**Me:**

**Percyval: What's with the silence?**

**Me: Oh… nothing…**

**Eli: *sigh* Just get on with it.**

**Me: Disclaimer?**

**Percyval: Silent Treecko doesn't own Grand Chase or its characters but he owns this story and his OCs. Other OCs belongs to their respective authors.**

**Me: Also, thanks to you readers for reading this story until now. Anyway, let's start.**

* * *

><p>Ch. 13: Grief<p>

_Eli's POV_

'Concentrate…' I thought.

I pressed the red button on Eclipse and swung it around once. Then, all of the training dummies around me where cut in half except one.

"I'll try again," I said.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"Come back here, Selena!" Zeta shouted.

"Catch me if you can!" the Lucifer said.

I was concentrating on reading the comic book that I haven't finished yesterday because of Eli. As I flipped to another page, I heard laughs from the two and I got irritated a bit. I stood up, brought the comic book and went upstairs.

"Did we upset him?" I heard one of them said.

I head towards my room and locked it tight. I placed my scimitar on the table besides my bed before I sat down on the bed with my back on the headrest and read the comic book. It was a while of reading before I heard an explosion and I looked at the window near me. I saw Eli in a training area as she waited for the training dummies to be replaced. Then, she quickly swung her heavy weapon around and after a second, all of the dummies were cut in half.

"That was fast," I commented.

Just then, I triggered a memory of mine. I held my left eye with my palm and tried not to remember that day again. The day… that scarred me for my life. I'm ashamed of myself. I'm not worth it for as long as I live.

* * *

><p><em>Scarlet's POV<em>

"Scarlet! Give it back!" Sapphire shouted.

"I won't let you eat this food ever again!" I shouted. "Suzaku!"

Suzaku appeared and I let it ate the blueberry cheesecake that I was holding.

"No!" my sister whimpered on the floor.

"I'll let you eat any dessert except this and banana ice cream cake!" I said. "Oh, and make Lass' cherry pie an exception too. I don't want you to be killed by that ninja guy."

Just then, a loud shout was heard.

"ELESIS!" the Thief shouted.

"Speaking of the devil…" I said and I sighed while I still saw her whining on the floor.

"Come on now!" I said as I dragged her to the living room.

* * *

><p><em>Amy's POV<em>

After an hour of cooking with Arme and my brother, we called everyone so that we can all eat our breakfast.

"Let's eat!" Elesis said with a big smile on her face.

Everyone has started eating except for Eli, who noticed something.

"Where's cousin?" Eli asked.

"I don't know. Maybe in his room?" Ace answered.

"I'll go and check," Eli said as she left her chair and she went upstairs.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

As she has arrived in front of Percyval's room, she knocked twice and waited for a while but there is no response. She repeated it two more times but she still got no response. As she held the knob, she noticed that it wasn't locked and entered his room, only to find that there is no one inside. She returned to the dining room and sat on her chair before she started eating.

"Found him?" Amy asked and Eli's plain reply was "No."

"Don't worry Eli," Ronan tried to comfort Eli. "Maybe he's just doing something important. He'll be back soon."

"I hope you're right," the Gun Empress said before she took a bite from her seared steak.

As everyone finished eating, they went on their own ways as usual. Eli was about to rest in her room when he heard a loud shout familiar to her. She turned around and went to the source of the sound.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

I shouted so hard, charging towards the dummy and slashed it heavily. I panted after doing so and I wiped of the sweat on my forehead. I prepared my scimitar and I was about to charge when suddenly…

"You don't have to tire yourself training," I already knew who said that since the voice was very familiar.

"Heh… Don't disturb me, Eli," I said. "I don't need you here."

"Well…" I heard footsteps approach my position. "Dummies are just dummies. Why not train with a moving target?"

"Tch. Fine!" I said as I placed my scimitar above my shoulders and turned around. "I'm getting bored anyway."

"Oh, by the way, this target also attacks," Eli said.

"Don't hold back," I threatened.

Eli was already holding her pistols when I charged and attacked directly in front of her. She blocked it by making an X formation with her pistols. I backed away and tried a different approach with all of my three weapons. A forward slash with my scimitar was blocked by her pistol and a diagonal slash from my dagger was dodged. I was about to grab hold of her with my claws but she fired at my hand and it deflected away. It's a good thing that it was covered with a strong type of bone.

"What's the matter?" Eli said. "Can't even scratch me?"

"Just wait and see!" I shouted in anger.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

'What's wrong with him? He's not in his usual self,' I thought.

I ducked an incoming slash from him and rolled away from his claws. Then, he made a barrage of attacks and I dodged every single one of them.

"Can't attack?" My cousin taunted.

"Why would I attack if you can't even touch my dress?" I countered.

"Why you…" He said and charged.

'What's wrong with him?' I thought as I dodged an attack from my cousin who has an unusual attitude.

"TAKE THIS!" He was about to thrust his scimitar towards me but I stopped it by grinding my pistols on the weapon. His weapon almost reached my dress but it wasn't damaged in any way. At that moment, I took action.

"What's wrong with you? You're not yourself, cousin," I said.

"Shut up!" He said as he tried to push his weapon towards me. Then, I let go of his weapon, ducked and punched him in his stomach. Then I made a roundhouse kick which sent him towards the ground and I approached his position. I pointed my pistol on his head.

"Percyval, I know something's troubling you… I can tell," I said as I looked at him.

He gave me a cold stare. I've never seen him do that before. I held out my hand to help him get up but he swatted it away and he went into a sitting position on the ground.

"I don't need your help," He said.

"What are you talking ab…out?" I said but paused briefly when I saw a tear run through his cheeks. When I looked at his face more carefully, I noticed that the cloth covering his left eye was pushed back and I saw his whole face, which was sad. What shocks me more is that when I saw a diagonal scar on his left eye which led me to this question quickly.

"W—what happened?" I said as I tried to caress his scarred eye but he quickly stopped me.

"Eli… this is none of your business," Percyval said sadly.

"B—but what happened to you? How did you get that scar?" I panicked. Just then, another question came to mind and quickly escaped my lips.

"Did something happen back at uncle's kingdom?" I asked.

"Nothing happened… at Vernandya," he said softly.

"Then what happened to your left eye?!" I shouted. "ANSWER ME!"

Just then, tears ran down from both eyes as he forcefully shouted these words: "I WAS BANISHED!"

Those words hurt me deeply as I tried to deny what he just said.

"What do you mean you we're banished?!" I shouted angrily at him. "How can uncle banish his only son?"

"It's a long story…" he said with a sniffle at the end. "Back then, when I was thirteen, father got sick and we don't know any cure for it. We don't know when he'll die yet but symptoms slowly showed up and he's weakening every month."

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

"It was then…" I said as I tried to remember the painful memory I kept within my head.

_I approached father as I was exactly told to. He took a deep breath and said, "Son, I don't think I'll last longer."_

"_Dad, don't say that!" I argued, trying to change the topic to somewhere else._

"_You know that you're the next one to be sitting to the throne," he said._

"_But… I'm still young," I argued._

"_Yes, you're still young, but, I know you can take your responsibility as a leader," my father said._

"_L-leader? I can't!" I shouted._

"_Why not? You've been studying for almost five years so that you are prepared," he said._

"_I can't… I don't think that I can handle the kingdom and all of the people," I said._

"_You won't know until you try, son," he said._

"_I CAN'T! WHY WOULD YOU NOT LISTEN TO ME? I'M STILL YOUNG!" I argued, which I think changed his mood._

"_Percyval!"_

"_Y-yes?" I said nervously._

"_Prepare your weapons for tomorrow. You'll take a battle to determine your strength," he said and left._

_That left me confused._

_A day has passed and I stepped into the arena with my weapons ready. Mr. Butler went besides me and said, "Young master, this will be the biggest test you'll ever take. Please, summon all your courage."_

"_Thanks, but, this'll be a piece of cake," I said._

'_What will be my opponent? Another monster?'I thought._

_The butler moved away and I unsheathed my scimitar, prepared to make a strike. When my opponent appeared, I almost dropped my weapon. My opponent… is my father._

"_Come and strike or I'll kill you!" He said fiercely._

"_But dad! You're sick!" I shouted and started to back away._

"_That is not an excuse to fight!" he said as he pointed his sword. "Now come and fight."_

"_No way!" I shouted._

"_I have no choice, then…" he said._

_Then, he charged towards me and attempted to slash me. Right at that moment, I closed my eyes. It happened so quickly that when I realized it, I was on the ground and my left eye hurts. I hold my left eye and I felt some liquid. When I looked at it, I saw blood on my hand. I tried opening my left eye and it opened. I can still see but the vision I had on my left was bloody. I closed my left eye and held it with my right hand when suddenly; a sword was pointed at my nose._

"_Will you fight?" my dad demanded an answer._

_I was in confusion, doubt and anger. I do not know what to say. I do not want to hurt my father, especially because his sick. Just then, words formed from my mouth._

"_I… I surrender…" I said._

_Then, the battle ended. Father sheathed his weapon and moved away from me._

…

_As the butler finished placing bandages on my left eye, two guards approached me and said, "Sorry young master but you're banished from this kingdom."_

"_WHAT?" That news shocked me and made my injury throb in pain._

"_Sorry, but it's an order," the guard said._

_I have no choice but to stand up from my seat, pack a few important things and left the kingdom. At that time, two words were in my mind._

'_Why father?'_

"And that's it," I said while I wiped my tears. "I don't even know why he did that and I don't even know if he's still alive!"

"Percyval…" she said.

Just then, she hugged me tightly and I can feel her tears ran down to my neck.

"Why didn't you tell me? I could've helped you that time!" Eli shouted.

I just stayed silent that time. I couldn't form words. The memory hurts me so much.

"Why?" Eli shouted.

Again, I stayed silent until darkness entered my vision.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter.<strong>

**Eli: Percyval! *cries***

**Me: Review please.**

**Note:**

**1. Now you know some of Percyval's past.**

**2. The reason why he denied the responsibilities as a leader back at chapter 6 was because of his past.**

**3. The kingdom where Percyval lived was Vernandya.**

**4. It's obvious by now that Percyval was a prince, hence he was codenamed "Prince" before. ^^**


	14. At the Lowest Point

**Me: Good day, readers.**

**Eli: Whatever author!**

**Me: What a mood breaker. Anyway, let us get this short chapter started.**

**Eli: Silent Treecko does not own Grand Chase and the characters made by KOG. He only owns his OC and the story.**

**Me: Let us get started!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 14: At the Lowest Point<p>

_Percyval's POV_

I found myself at my room after I woke up. It was dark but thanks to the moonlight coming out of the window, I can see Eli sleeping on a chair besides my bed. I think she was keeping an eye on me. I noticed the cold meal at the table near my bed but I do not have the appetite to eat. The memory still lingered in my mind. I stood up and walked towards the door as a certain familiar event flashed in my mind.

"_What? Can't you even stop your cousin from wrecking the place?" Cross said while he breathed heavily after he stopped Eli from rampaging._

"_Are you crazy?" I shouted while I was leaning on the wall with an injury on the left shoulder. "Who could stop that? She already destroyed thirty houses!"_

"_And it will be worse if I didn't try!" Cross shouted back._

"_Of course you can because you're fourteen and I'm only ten!" I argued._

"_That's not the point!" Cross shouted angrily. "It's not about the age! It is about the capability and the confidence that you can do the job done! You're a prince and soon it'll be your responsibility to take care of this kingdom!"_

"_But…" I said but Cross grabbed my right hand._

"_Look! The clan started training me when I was ten! Did they not train you with the basics of swordsmanship? If they do then you should've known that a knight must protect the kingdom where he served at all costs!"_

"_But I'm not even finished yet!" I shouted._

"_Is that even an excuse?" Cross said and sighed. "You know, master told me that our generation has a lot of potential to be great warriors. Well, what Eli did just know was a bit of a proof."_

"_And?" I asked._

"_The point is that we may have the potential to be something greater than before, something that even our ancestors have never done before. As long as you believe yourself, the sky is the limit."_

"_Such words…" I said while I smiled a bit._

"_Well, master told them to me and it was a bit of an inspiration," Cross said. "Let's take Eli to the infirmary. We could also use some help there you know."_

"_Right," I said._

"I don't know… I don't think I can do it, Master Cross…" I said.

"_Can you be my master?" I said to Cross while the others treated my left shoulder._

"_What for?" Cross asked._

"_This master of yours seems to be a big help for you. So if you can be my master, maybe you can help me in a way or two!"_

"_Okay… If that's the case," Cross agreed._

"I don't think I can be a worthy leader ever in my life…" I said.

"_I'm worried about Eli…" I said._

"_Eli? Do not worry about her! She is a tough girl. Even if she's about to drown in the oasis, I don't think she'll ever give up," Cross said._

"_Yeah…" I said._

_"Besides, I don't want to see someone drowning, especially a girl who doesn't know how to swim," Cross said._

"_Is that what you said to her back then when you saved her?" I said, smirking a bit._

"_You sure know how to guess," Cross said._

As I walked through the dark corridors, I did not even care where I'd be headed as long as nobody is around.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

I woke up and I noticed the sun outside. I stretched and yawned and I noticed that Percyval was not in his bed.

'Maybe he went around the mansion?' I thought. 'Well, he won't get far away from me, that I am sure of.'

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

I sat down at the banks of a river and I dipped my feet on the cold water, not caring if my shoes and pants will get wet or not.

'It's not worth living…' I thought.

Tears slowly fall down the ground as the memory of the past haunted me again.

"Crying like a baby out of sight?" someone said.

I turned around and saw Eli.

"Cousin? But how?" I said.

"I thought that you might ran away so I tucked Eclipse's bullet around your clothes so that I can use my weapon like a compass to find you,"

I just stood silent.

"You know, crying won't solve anything!" Eli lectured. "You should do what's the right thing to do! Life is short, cousin,"

"I don't care…" I said.

"Well, others care about you, especially me," Eli said. "I'm sure that you do care for someone."

Just then, something hit me hard.

'Father…' I thought.

"All of us have a certain mission to finish that is why you mustn't lose hope yet!" Eli said.

'That's right! I must obtain it! I must obtain the fruit,' I thought.

"Thanks Eli," I said as I made my resolve.

"That's the spirit!" Eli said.

* * *

><p><em>? POV<em>

"When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change."

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter. Please review.<strong>

**Notes:**

**1. A bit of story on Percyval's past with Cross.**

**2. Besides, I do not want to see someone drowning, especially a girl who does not know how to swim. Sounds familiar, is not it. ^^**

**3. A little connect-the-dots and you will know why Percyval's goal at the Harvest Festival.**


	15. Rise of the Swift Paladin

**Me: What a bright sunlight!**

**Percyval: As bright as it can be!**

**Eli: Start the story!**

**Me: Gee, enjoy the sunlight first.**

**Eli: Maybe you will enjoy running away from my missiles.**

**Me: Fine. Disclaimer?**

**Percyval: Silent Treecko does not own Grand Chase and its characters. This story and his OC's are the only ones he own. In addition, when the author saw KRGC's Project Resurrection, he thought it was awesome.**

**Me: It IS awesome! Anyway, rolling in the chapter!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 15: Rise of the Swift Paladin<p>

_Eli's POV_

I woke up early and equipped Eclipse with me. It has been three days since Percyval cheered up and he has been busy after that.

'I wonder if he has something on his mind,' I thought.

I walked out of my room and stretched my arms. As expected, it was not that bright yet and some of the Chasers are in their rooms. I walked down to the living room and saw no one.

'Maybe I woke up too early,' I thought.

As I walked through the corridors and passed by the lab, I heard a small noise coming from the said room.

'I wonder what Mari is doing,' I thought.

I continued walking down the corridors since there is nothing else better to do. Then, I walked outside for a little stroll and stopped when I heard a voice.

"Crusade Slash!" someone said.

Not too long, I saw some light coming from Training Room One. Curious, I went to the said training room and watched what is going on. I saw my cousin, who was training rigorously. I saw some training dummies, which are battered and scattered around.

"Once more. Crusade Slash!" Percyval made a swift uppercut, which sent the dummy into the air, and then he followed it by jumping and making an X shaped energy that he released diagonally downward. It hit the dummy and when it was near the ground, the energy exploded.

"I think I've perfected it," Percyval said.

"What a technique you've got there," I commented as I approached my cousin.

"Eli? How long have you've been there?" Percyval said after he turned around and saw me.

"Quite a while ago," I said.

"Heh heh heh… Quite a stalker, aren't we?" Percyval joked.

"Well, I wouldn't be here if you're not yelling so loud," I said.

"Yeah, whatever," Percyval said.

"Anyway, how long have you've been training?" I asked.

"Since midnight," Percyval smiled about it.

"Midnight? Get a rest you…" I scolded him for training that long and starting early.

"Geez… I was about to get a rest but then, you came by," my cousin said and he went inside the mansion.

'Sometimes, I'm worried about him and his acts of stupidity,' I thought as I walked towards town.

* * *

><p><em>Sieghart's POV<em>

I was about to take a nap on the couch but then, I saw Percyval sitting on the said couch. I approached him and saw that he was actually taking a snooze.

'Well, I don't want to disturb the guy,' I thought. 'He looks tired.'

I noticed that his weapons are not with him. I left the living room and went to Mari's lab. When I got there and entered, I saw Mari working on something.

"What are you working on?" I asked her.

"Just some weapon reinforcement," She said.

I saw Percyval's weapons on the table and asked if she was doing it on his weapons. Mari gave a nod while she's still focusing on her work.

"Well, well… Looks like the boy is getting into something," I thought out loud.

"Please keep your thoughts to yourself," Mari said.

"Hey, don't be like that," I said.

"Then I could use a hand," Mari said.

"All right," I said.

* * *

><p><em>Dante's POV<em>

I was putting some spices on the food that we will serve when Elesis came.

"Breakfast!" she claimed.

"Not yet and get out!" Arme said as she pushed her out by a spell and locked the door.

"I'm glad that we installed that door," I said as I went back to the dish I'm cooking.

"Brother, here's the loaf of bread," Amy said as she presented the said loaf.

"Thanks," I said. "Why don't you continue mine while I work on the sandwiches?"

"Sure," my sister agreed completely and took over my place.

I sat down on the chair near the table and took some bread and the spread I made and prepared beforehand. Just then, I saw Elesis by the window and I sighed.

"Some people can't just wait for breakfast," I said.

After we have finished cooking everything and prepared it on the dining table, we opened the door and the first one to storm in is Elesis, followed by Percyval and then the others. Both Elesis and Percyval chowed down on their food like there's no tomorrow. On my part, I was quite surprised on Percyval. He usually eats in a calmer way.

"Looks like someone has an appetite," Scarlet said.

"Don't worry. He'll need all the energy he can get," Eli said.

"Well, at least I'm not careless to choke on my food," Percyval stopped for a while to have a glass of juice.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" Elesis was angry but Percyval continued eating. Some of us, including me, laughed at the both of them. After breakfast ended, everyone, except me, Arme, and Amy, left and the three of us cleaned the table and dishes.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

Since I can't do any training without my weapons, I was on the library reading some books. Just then, Arme and Eli came and saw me.

"Looks like someone wants their head to be filled," Eli joked.

I ignored her and picked another book with the title "Landmarks and History of Atom." Just then, Arme and Eli sat down near me with their own books but I just concentrated on the book. I learned some quite interesting facts and things about Atom.

"The Protector, eh?" I muttered silently. After a while, I saw something shiny and I looked at Eli. Suddenly, I saw a tear ran down while she's reading.

'Was she crying?' I thought. 'Is the book she's reading was that moving?'

I returned my attention on the book I'm reading.

* * *

><p><em>Dio's POV<em>

"Piercing Lance!" I threw my spear at the dummies that we're lined and all of them are pushed to the wall, where my lance exploded and the dummies were torn apart. Being able to unlock the third seal feels good and there is only one seal left to worry about.

"Dio!" an annoying voice said and I quickly left the training room.

* * *

><p><em>Ley's POV<em>

"Where did he go?" I said as I looked around the training room. Then, I went out of the room to look for him.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

I've been reading for quite a while before Mari came and asked to come with her. I did follow her and Eli came along as well. As we entered Mari's lab, I quickly saw my newly reinforced weapons. I quickly approached my weapons and checked them all.

"As you've requested, your weapons are now reinforced with a stronger metal," Mari said.

I inspected each and one of my weapons. My scimitar now has the shiny metallic luster with the new handle with peculiar design of lines and curves. My dagger also exhibited the same metallic luster but its blade was sharper and there has been some designs carved on it like the design on my scimitar's handle. My clawed gauntlet feels more comfortable with its shiny metallic coat and the gauntlet part has the same design.

"Thanks," I said to Mari.

"If you need anything else, just ask me," Mari said as she resumed on working on something.

"Wow, you're weapons look neat now, cous'," Eli said.

"This isn't the only improvement that I have in mind," I said at Eli, smirking a bit.

"Huh?" said Eli, who was confused.

"Wait for me at the living room and you'll see," I said as I went out of the window and climbed upwards using the rough edges of the mansion's wall.

* * *

><p><em>Eli's POV<em>

"He could've gone the other way," I said.

As I thought about what he said, I decided to see what he meant and I went to the living room. There, I waited and waited until he came. I did become bored and picked up the closest newspaper I can grab. Not too soon, I heard some footsteps from the stairs and saw Percyval but I was amazed by the new look.

"So, how was it," Cousin asked as he stopped halfway from the stairs.

Percyval had a metal headgear on and both of his arms had silver metal bracers. He had a silver top that has the colors of blue and red, which acts like a double helix across his torso. He also had silver pants with the same red and blue double helix at each leg of the pants. His shoes are brown leather boots with red line, which were facing the other boot and blue lines on the other side. He wears new brown gloves and brown belt with two new brown scabbards with the same design with his leg.

"It's nice," I said.

"Hey, thanks," Percyval said.

"It's nice to see you improving," I complimented as Percyval went down the remaining stairs.

"From now on, I'll be known as a Swift Paladin," Percyval said.

"Okay. I'll remember that," I said with a joking manner.

"Heh heh heh. You better remember it," the Swift Paladin said. "I'm ready to take on anyone."

Just then, I heard someone came in and I quickly turned around and saw the Knight Master.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Please gather everyone," Knight Master said. "I have something to say to everyone."

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter.<strong>

**Percyval: Neat, huh.**

**Me: Whatever floats your bubble. Anyway, I can say that the story's plot will escalate from here.**

**Eli: Oh really?**

**Me: Do you think I'm kidding? Anyway, I'll try to type the next chapters as good as I can do.**

**Eli: You can do it, that's for sure.**

**Me: Also, please review.**

**Notes:**

**1. A short preview on what Percyval can do on his second job is his Crusade Slash. ^^,**

**2. Trivia: Two of my currently revealed OCs, Percyval and Cross, were based from some games. Percyval was mainly based from one game but his attacks were given by inspiration from some other things. Cross, on the other hand, was based from two games and his attacks were based from imagination and some attacks on some specific game. Try guessing which games Percyval and Cross came from. ^^, (Clue: One of Percyval's weapon and Cross' clothing in his third job.)**

**3. Percyval sometimes get so concentrated on training and sometimes, he was full of joy that he wants to climb and jump of certain buildings. That's a fact people.**


	16. A Mandatory Mission

**Me: Hello people!**

**Eli: Great to see you, author!**

**Percyval: Let us get this started!**

**Me: Disclaimer?**

**Percyval: Silent Treecko does not own GC and its characters. The only thing he own is his OCs and the story.**

**Me: START!**

* * *

><p>Ch. 16: A Mandatory Mission<p>

_Eli's POV_

Percyval and I have gathered everyone in the meeting room where Knight Master told us something.

"Grand Chase, I came here to report two things," Knight Master said.

"What is it?" Sieghart anxiously said.

"First, the fruit that has been auctioned as a fake had been located through an anonymous tip," Knight Master said.

"What?" Percyval quickly stood up and banged the table while he is at it. "Tell me where it is! I have to find it."

"The tree can be found after you go through a secret passage at the Underground Tunnel," Knight Master said as she presented a piece of paper. "Here's the way to get there."

As quick as he can get, Percyval quickly snatched the paper and inspected it thoroughly.

"Got it," he said. "I'll be looking for it."

"Wait, young man," Knight Master said. "I still have another piece of news."

"What is it? I only care about the fruit!" Percyval said.

"That's why you also need to know this!" Knight Master said as he scolded the Swift Paladin. "If you can still remember the guy in black coat, then I'll have you know that he's also on the lookout for the same fruit."

"Oh yeah? Then it's a race!" Percyval said.

"Percyval! Why are you so arrogant?" I scolded him for acting the way he was doing.

"Arrogant? For your information, I am not arrogant!" Percyval angrily said back at me. "This fruit is important! I must get it before the guy in black does!"

"Why do you want it…?" I said before I suddenly stopped after realizing something. The fruit… is his mission. After giving it some quick thought, I said, "So, you really need that fruit. It's for uncle."

"Exactly!" Percyval shouted. "That's why this is a mandatory mission!"

"I understand but we should plan this carefully," I said.

"She's right. You can't go without a proper plan," Elesis said.

"Alright," Percyval sat down as he decided to hear the plan. After some time, we had come up with a proper plan. Half of us will go there and the rest will serve as a backup whether something bad happened. The one's going are Elesis, Lire, Arme, Ryan, Lass, Ronan, Sieghart, Mari, Dio, Sapphire, Scarlet, Aura, Selena, Zeta, me and Percyval. After we have prepared, we went into the Underground Tunnel. There, we had met both an expected and an unexpected scenario. The person in black cloak and hood was already her and he was quite busy. The person fought strange monsters that were completely in dark color. Just then, Percyval charged towards the person in black.

* * *

><p><em>Percyval's POV<em>

I quickly approached the cloaked person with my unsheathed scimitar. I made a quick slash at the person's torso but he blocked it with his sword held in reverse position on his right hand. I quickly backed away and I was ready to make another strike.

"Don't even bother," the person said. "I'm not here to pick a fight."

"But you do have the same goal with us," I said.

"I'll buy that," the person said.

"Hey! I still have a question for you!" Elesis shouted out. "Why do you know my father's skill?"

"Your father?" the person said. "I invented my own skills, kid."

"Then maybe…" Ronan said but he was cut off.

"And I don't have any child yet so don't get into conclusions," the person said.

"Then tell me why do you need the fruit," I asked.

"Why don't you investigate yourself?" the person said. "Besides, I'm busy."

He stabbed another of those strange monsters and tossed it into the others. I had no choice but to defeat the same monsters to move forward.

"Hey, I'm not helping you," I noted him. "I'm just helping myself."

"Do as you please," the person said.

"Fine but I'm not going to help you in any way," I said.

"Suit yourself," he said.

"Guys, we found two possible ways to get to the appointed place," Ronan said. "We should split up so that we could check both routes."

"Okay. Dio, Sapphire, Scarlet, Aura, Selena, Zeta, Percyval and I will take the eastern route. The others will take the northern route," Eli said.

"Fine by me," Sieghart said. "Although we don't know what route the guy will take, it sounds like a solid plan."

"If you want to know where I'll go, I'll be walking through the eastern route," the person in black said.

"Hey! Let me go to the eastern route!" Elesis said. "I want to interrogate this mysterious person!"

"Come on, red," Sieghart dragged Elesis towards the northern route.

"Let me go gramps!" Elesis was shouting out words and after a while, her voice cannot be heard anymore.

"Feel free to go after me," the person in black went ahead towards the eastern route.

"Why would he pick the eastern route?" Eli asked.

"Because it's more interesting," the person shouted aloud.

"Let's go," Dio said and moved towards the eastern route. All of us followed and went through the eastern route.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person POV<em>

When all of them had gone quite deeper into the route, they had encountered a huge mass of monsters that the black person had fought a while ago. Everyone had gone into fighting position.

"Told you it's interesting," the person in black cloak, said.

"It is," Dio said.

"I could use some practice," Percyval said.

"Let's get this done and accounted for," Zeta said.

"Stop talking and start beating them to dust," Scarlet said as she summoned three different foxes.

The person in black started attacking monsters endlessly. Percyval just noticed that the way the person in black handled his weapons was different from before. Back then, he held both normally but today, he held the sword on his right hand in reverse and the other in normal position. Percyval charged towards the enemy and performed speedy combos, each hit always go through an enemy. Eli was bashing and firing her weapon at many enemies. She was backed up by Selena who covered her back and fought with her lances. Zeta slashed any monster he encountered with his Os Falx. The twins supported each other in a synchronized way that not even a monster or attack can get through their formation.

"Tenacious Hold!" Dio summoned his sword and stabbed it into the ground. Then, it stabbed a giant monster. Then, it was followed by two more swords.

"Have a taste of this! Wind Crest!" Percyval released a wave of energy horizontally, sending the enemies into the air, followed by a wave of energy with a cloud of sand that was vertically released, hitting the enemies while they are airborne.

"Land Burst! Let's go!" Eli pulled out her grenade launcher and pointed it upwards. She fired grenades and it spread all throughout the area where all of them exploded.

"Explosive Shot!" Eli fired a large missile towards the enemy horde and it exploded there.

"I really hate to help but—oh well," Scarlet said.

"Glacier Blast!" Sapphire conjured a spell, making a giant glacier fall from the sky then it exploded into tiny bits.

"Lance Breaker!" Selena casted lances around the enemy.

"Meteor Impact!" Zeta summoned multiple meteors and all of them bombarded the enemy horde.

"Terrain Vortex!" Aura spun once, lifts her katana into the air, and stabbed the ground, causing an explosion of fire around him. The monsters that are around her are caught in her attack and they are singed.

"Piercing Lance!" Dio threw his spear at the enemies. Just then, the person in black rode the said spear and said, "Death Slice!" He performed combinations of slashes and stabs while riding the spear, which had taken few of the monsters. Before Dio's spear hit the wall, the mysterious person jumped out of his ride and the spear exploded.

"Who are you?" Dio asked after he pointed his scythe at the mysterious person. "No one can do that."

"Let's say I'm just a special case," the person in the black cloak pushed away the scythe and continued moving forward.

"He's strange enough for me," Percyval said after he stabbed a monster.

"Looks like that's all of them around this area," Eli said.

"Yeah. Let's move on," Eli said.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: End of chapter… XD<strong>

**Eli: You are evil.**

**Me: No, I am not *smirks*.**

**Percyval: So, what is next?**

**Me: I will say that the next chapter is short and the following two to four chapters will be interesting.**

**Percyval: My guess… the next chapter will not be in the Underground Tunnel.**

**Me: And why?**

**Percyval: If I know you, short chapters are something like you would insert something important or a special story.**

**Me: Are you sure?**

**Eli: Let us just wait for it. Also, please review people!**

**Notes:**

**1. Percyval was after the fruit for his father. This should have been obvious at the chapter where he admitted that he is a prince and his father's sick.**

**2. Both Percyval and Eli's capabilities are not fully shown here. Wait for future chapters.**

**3. WHO IS THIS MYSTERIOUS GUY? XD**

**4. Next chapter will be featuring… *drum rolls* HALITE! (Just kidding XD)**


	17. A Disciple's Arrival

**Me: Good day everyone! I am sorry that I have not updated for a while because of school requirements. Anyway, semester break is soon and I can concentrate on the story now but another problem poses itself. Fourth skills are coming and the GP mission is limited here in GCPH. Why can they not adjust it to unlimited or on a longer time range like 1 month?**

**Eli: Do you want me to shoot them?**

**Me: I do not want any charges so do not bother. Maybe I will just earn some cash and so.**

**Percyval: I thought you are going to buy a new laptop.**

**Me: Oh no…**

**Percyval: Oh boy.**

**Me: What a drag. Anyway, let us just get on with this free story. *smile***

**Eli: At least fan fiction stories are free and you are free to post things here as long as you follow the rules.**

**Me: Yeah. Disclaimer please?**

**Percyval: Silent Treecko does not own Grand Chase, its characters, and other OCs that does not belong to him. Other things in the story belong to him.**

**Me: All right. Here is the chapter.**

* * *

><p>Ch. 17: A Disciple's Arrival<p>

_Jin's POV_

"Jin! You got a visitor!" Amy shouted.

"Who is it?" I asked the Dancer after I punched the training dummy.

"A boy named Asin Tairin," Amy said which had stopped me from my training.

"Who is he again?" I asked to make sure that I was not hearing thins.

"Asin Tairin," Amy said.

"No way!" l said. "Where is he?"

"In the living room," Amy said.

I quickly ran towards the living room. Still, I always thought that I am the only Silver Knight left. Now that I heard the vice captain's name, I have no time to waste. As I opened the door to the living room, I looked around but saw no one.

"Asin, where are you?" I shouted.

"Are you the one named Jin," a boy with white hair came out of nowhere.

"Who are you? Where's Asin?" I shouted.

"You're looking at him," he said.

"You're not the vice captain!" I said and I punched him but he blocked it with his left hand. There, I noticed a familiar object.

"That weapon…" I said.

"My master gave it to me. You see, my master always spoke of you whenever we trained," Asin said.

"Where is he?" I asked.

"I'm sorry to say but he's dead," the boy said.

I was crushed when I heard him said that. My hopes of meeting him again plummeted towards the ground. I saw him looking at me with a smiling face.

"Since you are the one that my master always spoke of, let's see how strong you are…" Asin said. "As an existence that will make me stronger!"

I saw his face turned into a fierce one. Then, I saw an incoming attack and I blocked it. I was still on the ground but the attack made me go outside the mansion.

"Why you…" I charged towards him and suddenly, he grabbed me and dragged me towards the ground. I got up and I saw Asin taunting me.

* * *

><p><em>Asin's POV<em>

"That's it? I haven't even started yet," I said.

"Neither do I," he said and he charged towards me.

"It is useless," I said and I prepared myself to block it. Then, he surprised me as he slid underneath me and punched me from behind. I turned around and blocked myself from another attack.

"That surprised me," I said.

"You have not seen anything yet," Jin said.

"Stop it!" someone shouted.

* * *

><p><em>Third Person View<em>

Knight Master approached the two fighters and said, "Stop it, you two." Jin backed away from Asin and went inside the mansion.

"He seems to be upset," Knight Master said. "What happened?"

"Just a mere introduction," Asin said.

Knight Master was silent for a while before he said, "Let's get inside so that I can introduce to you some of the Chasers."

"Some?" Asin asked.

"Some of them were currently in a mission back at Atum. Let's go," Knight Master said.

Both of them went inside the mansion.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: The end. This story was meant to be short that is why it is short. XD<strong>

**Percyval: At least you updated.**

**Me: My bad. I should have updated earlier but fourth skills are a nuisance. At least I got all of them already.**

**Eli: Sweet.**

**Me: And they are not the only ones who have those. Anyway, review people.**

**Note:**

**1. Halite is rock salt. Now, do you get it by what I meant in the last chapter?**

**2. One of the reasons for my late update is that I improved the grammar in the previous chapters of this story.**

**3. Next chapter is a shocking revelation, or is it? Chapter name: The Mysterious Person**


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